A Sequence of Events
by directi0n
Summary: The curse was only cast when Emma turned five years old. After being sent to our world and having retained her memories, she vowed to take revenge. When she finally comes to the town of Storybrooke, Emma devices a plan as to how breaking Regina Mills will go about. It's just a sequence of events before she can break the Evil Queen's curse and get her family back, or is it?
1. Prologue

**Prologue **

"Mama?" Her daughter spoke after the story was finished.

"Yes, my dear girl?" She smiled as she smoothed her daughter's blonde head.

Emma looked up at her with hazel eyes that reflected the moonlight shining through the large window beside them, her fingers absentmindedly drawing lines on her mother's hands. "Why do you always tell the story of 'The Evil Queen'?"

"Because she is a very dangerous woman," Snow softly replied, still perched on the edge of her daughter's bed as the younger girl peered up at her, looking not at all fatigued for someone who just spent the entire day in celebration of her birth day.

"Dangerous and powerful," she added. "So you must be careful."

Emma furrowed her brow, a trait definitely inherited from Charming. "Where is she now?"

Snow White sighed. It had been five winters since Regina had barged into her wedding and threatened everyone in the kingdom to take away their happiness. Although word had gone around that the Evil Queen was preparing for a dark curse, no one had detected any danger nor heard or seen any further provocation from the Evil Queen. Some townspeople had even risked their lives to travel to the Dark Castle, armed of course.

When they brought back news of the state of the abandoned castle, everyone was convinced that the Evil Queen had fled and only made an empty threat to scare them. None the less, Snow White had stepped up precaution and set up wards around the kingdom from the Dark Castle and with the help of Rumplestiltskin, who remained imprisoned in their castle's dungeons, enchanted every mirror in the castle to prevent Regina from spying on them.

"Honestly," Snow admitted. "I do not know. No one knows; it's as if she just disappeared into thin air overnight. This is what makes her _even_ more dangerous, because she is an unseen enemy."

Just then, the doors to Emma's bedchambers squeaked open and Charming stepped in, grinning at his wife and child.

"Not tired yet, birthday girl?"

"No, Father," Emma grinned back up at him. "I want to stay up until the last hour of my birth day!"

Charming chuckled and settled on the other side of the bed. "Turning five is delightful, isn't it?"

"Yes!" Came Emma's enthusiastic reply then she turned toward her father. "Father, have you met the Evil Queen? Is she as evil as the stories say?"

Immediately, Charming glanced toward his wife who only gave a small nod.

"Well," he started. "I have definitely had some encounters with her in the past and let's just say they weren't pleasant."

"Oh." Emma replied and Snow cannot help but detect a trace of disappointment in her tone.

"Why do you ask, honey?" Charming asked, sensing the question from his wife and helping her ask instead.

Emma stared at the foot of her bed, silent for a while. Then she said, "I just think that everyone has a good side to them, that nobody is born evil."

Snow White listened to her daughter as her memories brought her back to a time where the brightest of smiles, now almost absent on her erstwhile stepmother, had come from a Regina she knew was kind and gentle. She wondered if that woman still lived in her now. _No, _she shook her head. _It was impossible. _Regina had spiraled into a void of hate and darkness it cannot be.

Snow smiled to herself as she watched her husband and daughter play little hand games and giggling, oh what she would give to prolong such a moment.

"Alright little one," she gently said, standing up. "It is about time you go to sleep."

"But it is not midnight yet!" Emma pouted.

Charming laughed and stood as well, reaching forward to pull the covers over his daughter. "You will still fall asleep before that anyway."

Although lightly grumbling, Emma acquiesced when she felt her eyelids becoming heavier and settled further under the covers. Just as Charming and Snow both leaned down to give their daughter a goodnight kiss, the doors to the bedchambers burst open and a flustered guard ran in and immediately knelt on one knee with his head bowed, a common gesture in their kingdom when asking for forgiveness.

"Your Majesties! I apologize for the intrusion into her Highness's chambers, but there has been grave news!"

"Rise," Snow brushed off his aside frantically. "Tell us."

"It's the Evil Queen! She has cast a very dark curse, and it is now approaching the kingdom quickly."

"What!" Charming bellowed, outraged. "How did this happen?"

"I-it seems that the Evil Queen had been in silent preparation all this time she was absent, my King. She is on her way to the castle right now."

Snow took this all in and her head quickly went to action.

"Guard," she ordered. "Gather all the troops and station them at all corners of the castle. She is sure to bring her own army."

The guard nodded and sped off, immediately tending to his role. Suddenly, she felt a tug on her hand and looked down to see a scared Emma clutching tightly onto her baby blanket. "Mama, what is happening?"

Snow immediately knelt down and carried Emma, "It is not safe here anymore. Charming, what should we do?"

Still donned in his armour and sword prepared at his side, Charming snapped his fingers. "The wardrobe!"

How could she forget, Snow chastised herself as they hurried to the chamber in which the wardrobe had been kept, Emma's small frame wrapped tightly in her arms. Right after the birth of Emma, they had received a tip-off (which later proved to be false) that the Evil Queen was waiting for the birth of the little princess before casting the curse. Worried about the repercussions, the royals had engaged the help of Geppetto to construct a wardrobe from a tree small enough to fit one and the Blue Fairy to enchant it.

"It will bring the child to somewhere safe should there be times of danger," the Blue Fairy had said.

"Mama, what is happening?" Emma asked again, fear gripping her voice as she was carried by her mother over corridors and staircases.

Hearing the plead in her daughter's voice, Snow cannot help but leak a few tears about the revelation of what is to come. When they finally reached the chamber which was situated at the top of the castle, Snow put Emma down and looked into her eyes.

"Listen to me," she said with urgency. "Something is going to happen to all of us here, but you are going to be safe."

Charming pointed to the magical wardrobe. "See that wardrobe in the tree trunk over there? That is where we're going to send you, to keep you safe."

"But-"

Emma was in tears now and when she was interrupted, starting crying even harder.

"There is no time, honey," Snow hastily said, ushering her into the wardrobe.

"But where will I end up in?"

She watched as her parents looked sadly at each other.

"We do not know," Snow admitted.

"But," Charming added and knelt beside the wardrobe, taking her hand in his. "We know you will _always _find us."

Snow smiled through her tears and took Emma's other hand. "Family always finds each other."

"Please…" Emma whimpered but her cries were drowned out when a loud bang resounded on the door of the chamber that Charming had locked behind them.

"Go!"

Emma heard her mother shout to her father as Snow slammed the door of the wardrobe as she brought the baby blanket tighter around her, the only thing that proved to be a source of comfort right now. She could hear muffled swords clanging and loud screams beyond the thick wood of the wardrobe door but everything went to a dead silence in a matter of seconds.

And then in the midst of her sobs, everything went black.


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1 **

The first thing that hit Regina Mills when she entered Granny's diner was not the strong waft of waffles, not the aroma of coffee, not even the grumble of her stomach but the scene of Mary Margaret Blanchard giggling over the counter with Ruby Lucas. Just the perfect way to start her Saturday morning, she grouched. Not bothering to hide her scowl, Regina made a beeline toward the duo who immediately fell into silence once they spotted her.

"Madame Mayor," Ruby greeted politely. "Your usual?"

"Yes," Regina nodded toward the waitress, not even giving the pixie haired brunette a glance. "But I'll have it to go."

"And a hot chocolate too, with whipped cream and cinnamon!"

Henry's voice piped up beside her and Regina turned to give her son the eye. "Henry, you do know it is too early for sweet drinks."

"It's already ten in the morning!" Henry protested, his storybook in hand and giving her the puppy dog eyes, knowing that was foolproof for getting what he wanted. "Please?"

Heaving a sigh, Regina pursed her lips. "Fine, but we're having salad tonight."

"Fine," Henry grouchily replied. Salad for dinner can be balanced out with his secret stash of sweets under his bed, he thought as he rushed over to greet his teacher, a gesture that never fails to annoy his mother immensely.

"Hi, Miss Blanchard!" Henry eagerly greeted as he settled in the seat beside her at the counter, conveniently bringing space between Regina and Mary Margaret.

"Hi Henry," the woman smiled before turning toward his mother, suddenly feeling very flustered in the presence of the older brunette. "M-Madame Mayor, good morning."

Mary Margaret watched as Regina gave a curt nod to her, barely a form of acknowledgement, before moving to the far end of the counter, idly browsing through some brochures that are definitely of no interest to the powerful woman. She never really understood how or why but the Mayor always seemed to be reluctant to be near her, almost as if she hated being in her presence. But then again, there was no one Regina Mills was _not _aloof to, except her son.

"Thank you for giving me this book," Henry beamed up at her as his fingers traced the large bold words of 'Once Upon A Time' imprinted on the old leather of the cover. "I'm close to finishing it!"

"Wow," Mary Margaret bobbed her head up and down, impressed. It was a pretty thick book, after all. "I just gave it to you yesterday and now you're almost finished?"

"Yup," the ten year old grinned proudly, and then he leaned in close enough so that his voice was barely a whisper. "Did you know that everything in this book is true?"

Mary Margaret raised an eyebrow, confused.

"The curse," Henry continued. "In the book, the Evil Queen cast a powerful curse that brought all the fairytale characters from the Enchanted Forest to this world and when they came here, everyonehas no idea who they _really _are."

"Okay…" Mary Margaret nodded, trying to catch up with the boy. In truth, she had always noticed how the other children in her class always left Henry out just because nobody wants to play with "the Mayor's kid" and had felt sorry for him. This led her to scour Mr. Gold's Pawnshop until she found the story book, which she thought was quite suitable for him, and felt that maybe it could at least be of some company to the young boy.

"And do you know what else?"

"What?"

"Everyone in this town is_ in_ this book."

Mary Margaret stared wide-eyed at the boy into his hopeful eyes. As an elementary school teacher, she knew how rampant a child's imagination can be. Not wanting to run him down so quickly, she encouraged him to go on.

"So you're saying that everyone in our town… is a fairytale character?"

Henry nodded eagerly, glad that his teacher believed him although the skeptical look on Mary Margaret's face said otherwise.

"You are Snow White, and she," he pointed to Ruby who was busying herself with packing the beverages. "Is Little Red Riding Hood. You two were like, best friends before the curse. Maybe that's why you guys get along so well now!"

Mary Margaret glanced at the waitress and can't help but smile. It was strange, how she had so easily clicked with Ruby the first time she met her in the diner even though they look the complete opposite of each other. Although she knew better than to continue entertaining him, Mary Margaret's curiosity got the better of her.

"So who do you think is this 'Evil Queen'?"

Her stomach did an involuntary small flip when she saw Henry's face sobered up and he lowered his voice once more.

"My mom."

"Henry, let's go."

The deep voice of the Mayor startled them and they immediately jumped apart, faces turning beet red as if they were two teens caught in the act of shoplifting. Regina stood behind them holding on the to-go bags, a perfectly sculpted eyebrow raised at their behaviour. She said nothing, however, only tilting her head at Henry, a silent order for him to heed her.

Obeying his mother, Henry quickly slid out of his seat and bid a hasty goodbye to Mary Margaret and Ruby before following the Mayor out, the book tucked securely under his arm as Mary Margaret watched the two leave.

Now here's the thing about the door to Granny's diner; it was your everyday typical town kind of rickety door that swung out from the inside. For some reason, Granny had put up blinds on the entrance windows and door of the diner ("Damn sunlight," she had once said). Now so conveniently on this particular Saturday morning (which Granny had so conveniently taken the weekend off, leaving the diner to her granddaughter), the blinds to the entrance door had been drawn, effectively blocking off the line of sight from the inside to the outside and vice versa.

In her haste to get away from the pixie haired brunette, Regina walked in quick strides toward the entrance door, an arm stretched to push the door only for it to swing open from the other side and she collided into another body. Harshly. Her other arm, which had been safeguarding the to-go bag, flattened against her torso on the impact, the spilt coffee and hot chocolate leaking through the thin material and onto her silk blouse.

"Jesus Christ!"

It did not help that the two words uttered from the other person was not even an apology and Regina glared at her dripping self, before turning to finally face the woman who had been responsible for all this mess.

[-]

Emma Swan had a bad morning.

Sure, last night had been one of nervous albeit excited haste: learning about Storybrooke, packing, and then making the four hour drive from Boston to Maine. But that had soon delayed to become an eight hour drive due to some road works _and _a major accident somewhere on the highway, causing traffic to move like a snail. When she finally got out of heavy traffic, Emma was no doubt exhausted and pissed.

When she had finally managed to roll into Storybrooke, she did not even bother with examining her surroundings as she drove straight into Main Street and thanked whatever gods above that there was a diner.

A triple shot espresso would help, was all she remembered thinking before the collision happened.

Now standing with dripping coffee on her shirt from the other woman's to-go bag, Emma decided she's had it with all this fuckery thrown at her and cursed out loud.

"Jesus Christ!"

The brunette woman glared at her with such ferocity Emma felt her heart initially thumping faster out of fear but it soon burgeoned into anger when the other woman spoke.

"I believe it is not the second coming," Regina snapped, sass still in place despite her current messy appearance. "Now you've ruined my blouse!"

"Please," Emma retorted back, quickly shrugging off her red leather jacket which thankfully, had not gotten soiled in the process. "You are the one who can't look where she's going and just in case you haven't noticed, _my _clothes are ruined too."

Regina glanced at the brown stain on the brunette's tank top and scoffed, "That rag you call 'clothes' is not even worth the price of the floor mats in my house."

Then grabbing Henry, she stepped up close to the blonde and snarled, "I will see you pay for this." With that, she pushed the blonde roughly aside and walked off.

Emma rolled her eyes and shook her head. _Some people are mad crazy, _she thought as she made a beeline toward the counter where the waitress had been looking on.

"What?" She asked as the tall brunette, who was wearing way too little by the way, stared in what seemed to be shock at her.

"Wow," The waitress breathed. "No one has _ever _spoken to the Mayor like that before, you're a first."

This time, it was Emma's turn to scoff. "_She's _the Mayor? God, how do you people survive with such a tyrant?"

The waitress shrugged. "We're used to it. I'm Ruby, by the way."

"Emma Swan," Emma replied. "Say, do you happen to have a laundry room around here?"

Ruby nodded. "It's just at the back."

"Thanks," Emma replied before heading off in the direction Ruby had directed her to.

Stepping inside the laundry room, Emma closed the door to ensure a little privacy before quickly stripping off her white tank top and dumping it in a washing machine. Noticing some dry clothes hanging on the clothes rack above, Emma grabbed one blue cotton blouse before putting it on.

"Oh hello!"

She jumped and spun around, almost cursing because _who in the right mind would sneak up on people like that _before she stopped. And stared. She had an idea of what to expect when she made the trip here of course, just… not so soon, and definitely not under such circumstances.

Mary Margaret smiled at the blonde stranger as she stepped in from the back, previously wringing out some wet clothes.

"The dryer is spoiled," she said, making conversation. "So I guess you have to either wait for Billy, the maintenance guy, or blow your clothes dry yourself."

Emma watched mouth still agape, as the brunette woman, her _mother, _stopped beside her and placed her basket of clothes atop the washing machine.

"But I suggest you take the latter, Granny always takes on such duties and she's off for the weekend so you'd have to wait till Monday."

When Mary Margaret turned to smile at her and Emma immediately felt her tears gather, her voice too choked to speak. It was as if she was a child again, dreaming about her mother's gentle smile, only this time it was real.

"Are you alright?" Mary Margaret's concerned voice brought her back to reality and Emma turned away, quickly brushing her tears aside and clearing her throat.

"Uh, yeah, I uh…" She turned to look back toward her mother again. _Something wasn't right. _"I… You… D-do you remember me?"

_Dammit get it together, Swan._

Mary Margaret stared blankly at the blonde before smiling apologetically. "I'm sorry; I don't think we've met before."

That's right how could she be so stupid, Emma mentally berated herself. It had been twenty three years since they last saw each other and she definitely would have looked different from her five year old self.

"Oh… I-I'm Emma," Emma replied slowly, scanning the other woman's face for any trace of recognition at the name. "Emma Swan."

"Emma…" the brunette smiled dreamily, as if in a trance. "Such a pretty name! To be honest, I have always wanted to name my child that too. I'm Mary Margaret Blanchard!"

At this, Emma started. _Something was definitely wrong, either that or she is crazy. _

"So are you new in town?"

"Uh yeah," Emma gave a tiny smile.

"Oh," Mary Margaret smiled back so freely, it almost hurt. "We seldom get any visitors in this town. In fact, I think you're a first!"

"I might be staying here for a while. There are… things I need to do."

_And answers to find._

"You can try Granny's Bed and Breakfast! It's just around the corner from here; I can help you ask Ruby about that."

"Oh no," Emma declined on instinct and then mentally cursed herself when she saw the other woman's dejected face. "I mean, I appreciate your help. But I'm just used to independence."

Mary Margaret nodded. "Alright, if you need anything you know you can approach me?"

It was a question and Emma cannot help but feel a bittersweet clutch in her gut. "I will… if I ever need help."

With that, she politely excused herself, leaving Mary Margaret staring after her.

[-]

"See to it immediately, Sidney." Regina barked into the phone, irritancy remaining at a high level at the man's flustered state.

After speeding home and changing into something comfortable and most importantly, _dry_¸ she had realized how disconcerting of a fact it was that she had never seen the blonde stranger around town before. Which led to only one thing: she was new to town, a stranger. Sensing threat, she had ordered Sidney to monitor the blonde's movements. At least this was sufficient enough to give her a sense of security, for now, that is.

As Regina sat in the living room contemplating all this, little did she know that just upstairs of her mansion, a revelation had been made that could most possibly change her life forever.

[-]

Emma sat at the counter sipping from her hot chocolate and discreetly observing the people in the diner.

If her gut feeling about the postcard was accurate, why is it that everyone in this town seemed so… _normal_? It was true that she had prepared for this journey not knowing what to expect, but from what she had deduced in her observations, it was just highly _unlikely_. She needed more information but from what she had asked Ruby earlier, it seems like she will not be getting answers anytime soon. Or so, she thought.

The diner's bell chimed as Emma watched a little kid run in and slid two seats away beside her, dumping his huge ass book on the counter with a heavy thud.

"Ruby," the boy hissed, not even giving her a glance.

"Henry?" Ruby asked. "What are you doing here and where's your mom?"

"She doesn't know I'm here," the boy, Henry, replied. "Where is Mary Margaret?"

"She left around half an hour ago. And you should probably go back, before Regina finds out." Then turning to Emma, Ruby set the bear claws Emma had previously ordered in front of her.

"Here you go, Emma."

"Thanks," Emma said, reaching out to take one.

"Emma? As in, _Emma Swan_?"

Emma turned swiftly to her left, suddenly aware of how the boy was sitting right next to her and staring at her with bulging eyes.

"Kid, how do you know my last name?" Emma raised a skeptical eyebrow at him, suddenly very cautious.

Henry just continued staring at her with a disbelieving look. "Y-you're Emma Swan… What are you doing here? I thought you were in Boston?"

Emma stared at the kid aghast._ How the hell did this kid know something she had never revealed?_

Emma gave a side glance to Ruby, who had been darting her eyes toward them suspiciously, and her heart rate picked up. She had come here on a mission and she was definitely not going to let some kid ruin it for her.

"Okay kid let's go," Emma rose from her seat, signaling for Ruby to pack her bear claws to-go.

"Where're we going?"

"To talk."

"Only if I choose where we're going."

"Why should I listen to you?" Emma retorted. "You're just a kid."

"Why should I listen to _you_? How would I know you wouldn't kidnap me?"

"How would I know _you _wouldn't kidnap me?" Emma countered.

"Because I'm just a kid," Henry grinned.

Realizing she had been outwitted, Emma sighed. "Fine, let's go."

[-]

"So… this is a playground?" Emma looked at the dilapidated state of the wood construction.

Henry shrugged. "I call it my castle. The other kids don't play here because it's old and not fun, but I like it here."

Emma hummed in acknowledgement as she followed Henry and hoisted herself onto the wooden banister.

"Okay kid, speak. How do you know who I am?"

Henry took a deep breath and started. "Do you remember the baby you gave up ten years ago?"

Emma's face scrunched into a flabbergasted look. _Jesus, now this kid even knows about my past? _

"That was me."

It took a minute for Emma to take that in as she stared apprehensively at… her son. Then she gave a cynical laugh.

"Kid, I'll give you that one. Man, you're pretty good huh, scaring people and all."

"You think I'm lying? It's the truth! I went to a website on the Internet and I found your name and address!" Then Henry promptly shut his mouth, not wanting to say about the part where he had slipped Mary Margaret's credit card from her wallet earlier that day.

At this, Emma stopped. It does not seem that this kid was lying but then again, nothing made sense. What was the son she gave up for adoption ten years ago doing in this town? Why did her mother look so awfully young when a full twenty three years had passed? Where was her father? And where was the person who had been behind all this? Emma closed her eyes and rubbed her temples, it was so confusing it hurt to even think about it.

At her prolonged silence, Henry continued, "I was thinking of going to Boston to look for you, actually. But then I'm not surprised you're here, in Storybrooke. You're the Saviour after all."

Emma snapped her head up. "What?"

"The curse!" Henry grinned. "The curse that the Evil Queen cast!"

This kid was really taking her by surprise each minute.

"How did you know about the curse?"

Henry held up the huge ass book that his tiny arms had been holding on to. "This! Everything in this book actually happened and everyone in this town is a character in here! The Evil Queen cast a very powerful curse that sent everyone from the Enchanted Forest into this world and they have no memory of who they really are!"

_No memory… _Of course, Emma realized. It is no wonder that her name had not even ringed a bell in her mother's head.

"Time has stopped in this town for twenty three years and only the Saviour can break the curse and make time start again! You are the Snow White and Prince Charming's daughter, the Saviour who can break the curse!"

Emma reached forward and took the book from Henry. "Where did you get this from?"

"My teacher, Miss Blanchard gave it to me."

"Mary Margaret Blanchard?"

Henry nodded. "She didn't seem to believe me when I told her about the curse. But that's okay because it's only the curse that is blocking her memory. Once you break the Evil Queen's curse, everyone will start to remember."

Emma silently flipped through the book and looked at the illustrations. She had heard so many stories of the Evil Queen from her mother as a child and this book had accurately reflected each and every one of them.

Emma stopped at a picture of Prince Charming and pointed at it, looking toward Henry. "My father… where is he?"

Henry widened his eyes. "You believe me?"

At this, Emma gave a small smile. "Of course, I wouldn't forget the biggest thing that happened in my childhood."

Henry paused for a moment before remembering. "Oh yeah! You were put into the wardrobe at five!"

Emma smiled again and nodded. "Where is Prince Charming?"

"He's in the hospital," Henry said. "He has been in a coma since the earliest I can remember."

"You mean my parents are not together, in this world?"

Henry shook his head. "That's why the Evil Queen cast the curse, to take away everyone's happy endings!"

"Who is this Evil Queen?" Emma asked, the sheer frustration this unknown woman was bringing her is nearly driving her insane.

"Actually…" Henry trailed off, suddenly avoiding her gaze. "You've met her before."

"What?"

"The lady who you crashed into this morning at the diner? She's my mother, the Mayor of this town."

Emma blinked as she recalled the morning's events. She had not seen the kid in the midst of the chaos but suddenly it all made sense: the way Ruby had looked at her when she talked back to the Mayor, the glaring gaze from the woman herself, the way everyone seemed almost _petrified _of her. The Evil Queen had been Queen once and it was only fitting she wanted to be the ruler in this land again.

"The Evil Queen _adopted _you?"

Henry kept his head down, a feeling of sadness washing over him. "Yeah, but she doesn't love me."

"How do you know?"

"She _can't. _When she cast the curse, there will be a void within her. A void she can't be able to fill," Henry quoted. "So it's impossible."

Emma kept silent, a plan already hatching in her head.

"Kid, how would you like to help me on this mission?"

Henry's brow crinkled. "What mission?"

"To break the curse."

"Definitely!" Henry jumped up in excitement. "We can call it Operation Cobra."

Emma broke into small laughter at the weird name but accepted it nonetheless, "Anything you'd like, but we have to keep it a secret."

"Pinky promise," Henry agreed as they hooked pinkies.

Then glancing at his watch, Henry quickly packed his stuff. "Oh shoot, my mom is going to find out I'm missing! It's close to lunch!"

Emma got up as well. "I'll drive you."

"Thanks," Henry replied as they clambered into Emma's bug.

"Where to, kid?"

"108 Mifflin Street."

[-]

"Henry, lunch is ready!"

When there was no sign or sound of movement upstairs, Regina frowned.

"Henry?" She said, making her way up the stairs and toward her son's bedroom.

"Henry, I made spaghet-" She stopped abruptly when she saw the state of her son's bedroom: empty.

In a flash, Regina rushed downstairs and grabbed her car keys, peeved that Henry had sneaked out on her again but even more worried because _what if he got into an accident?_

Just as she opened her front door however, a yellow beetle pulled up at her entrance and that became the least of her worries when Henry stepped out of the car and she heaved a sigh of relief. But soon, the flame that was her anger rekindled when she saw who else got out of the car: the blonde stranger.

Rushing toward them, she bent down and put a hand to Henry's face.

"Where did you go, Henry? You know the rules, no sneaking out. If you want to go somewhere, just tell me and I'll gladly take you." Regina said, her tone stern yet shadowing an undertone of concern.

"I found my _real _mom," Henry bit back, ducking his head from her touch and running into the house.

Regina stood back up and surveyed the blonde in shock.

"You're Henry's birth mother?"

Suddenly under the scrutiny of the Evil Queen, Emma nervously licked her lips. "I guess we've met."

Straightening herself, Regina never broke the blonde's gaze. "Come in, we need to talk."

[-]

"So, Miss Swan," Regina addressed the blonde from their brief introduction earlier, pouring a glass of apple cider for both of them. "What brings you here?"

Emma shrugged casually as she looked around Regina's study. "I wasn't doing well with my old job so I decided to move up to Maine. Who knew I took a wrong turn and ended up stumbling into the town of Storybrooke."

"Which you so happened to find out the child you gave away ten years ago was in," Regina skeptically said, handing the glass to Emma and settling opposite her.

"Yes," Emma said confidently.

"Well, if you expect me to believe that," Regina smiled and for a second Emma thought she could get away with it. "I _don't._"

Or not.

"That's up to you," Emma gave another shrug, taking a sip of the cider and finding it surprisingly good.

"What business do you have with Henry?"

"Look lady," Emma sighed, exasperated. "I'm not trying to take your son away if that's what you're thinking. You've been with him since birth, I get it. But now that I know he is the kid I gave birth to, I'm not going to sit back and not do anything. Maybe a little time with him would be great."

"Am I hearing things or are you actually asking permission to spend time with _my _son," Regina snickered. "I'm his _mother._"

Emma downed the rest of her drink as she eyed the brunette warily.

"I mean, of course I respect that fact," Emma replied. "But I'm not asking for much. Like an outing or an ice cream treat, even half an hour would suffice."

The look Regina gave her was so dirty Emma mentally applauded herself when she did not shrink back.

"You're missing the point, Miss Swan. I'm his _mother,_" Regina reiterated. "What I say goes and right now, I say you are to stay away from my son."

Then Regina stood up abruptly and stalked toward the door, holding it open.

"The exit is this way."

Although surprised by the sudden turn of events, Emma rose and brushed past Regina, heading toward the main door.

"Oh, and Miss Swan?"

Emma spun around to see Regina holding out a laundry bag.

"The shirt you soiled this morning? I want it washed and dry by tomorrow." Regina grinned devilishly.

"What? I don't even have a place to stay." Emma protested.

"Then deal with the consequences."

Without even a word of goodbye, Regina closed the door with a loud thud once Emma stepped onto the porch.

It didn't matter if the Evil Queen was one hell of a bitch, Emma decided. She needed to find a place to wash that damn blouse, she needed to see Henry again. As she made her way to her bug, Emma considered what she had found out in the short period of time she spent in Storybrooke. A plan was definitely in place, she checked as she got in the bug.

That was when she noticed Henry's book lying on his passenger seat. It took a moment, then she got it. Picking up the book and feeling its velvety texture, Emma smiled.

_That smart kid. _

**A/N: The winter finale really hit me hard and I must say I was reduced to heap of sobbing mess. Thank you to all who have read and I hope you enjoyed this chapter! All mistakes are mine.**


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Emma sat in the booth at Granny's diner, sipping from her hot chocolate and rereading the last chapter of the book Henry had left in her bug on Saturday night.

It was a lucky thing she had caught Ruby at the diner before the latter got off work otherwise she would not have gotten the brunette to lead her to Granny's Bed and Breakfast to check in. At least a place to stay for the next one week was settled, and so was the damn blouse. Emma had spent the whole of Sunday cooped up in her adequately furnished inn room, reading Henry's book and drawing a timeline for the events that happened before and after her birth according to the book, right up till the curse happened. Some of the stories in the book had been told by her parents as bedtime stories; like how the Evil Queen had gatecrashed their wedding, or how her parents had sought help from the Dark One when her mother was pregnant with her.

"Hey!"

She looked from the book to see Henry sliding into the seat opposite her and she immediately scanned her surroundings for the Mayor. God knows she was in no mood to entertain the woman and her attitude today.

"Kid, what're you doing here?" Emma frowned. "Aren't you supposed to be in school? Where's your mom?"

"I told her I'd take the bus to school today."

"And you're here, in front of me."

Henry grinned up at her before noticing the book. "Did you finish reading the book?"

"Yeah," Emma nodded watching the boy closely as he rummaged about his backpack and fished out two walkie-talkies.

"Here," Henry handed her one. "I know how my mom is strict about me leaving the house so this can be a form of communication between us!"

Emma smiled as she received the black device. Just then, Ruby came up to them and handed Emma the sandwiches she had ordered. As the tall brunette turned to strike conversation with Henry, Emma studied Ruby closely.

Now that she had a grasp on the characters in Henry's book, it was no doubt Ruby was Red Riding Hood back in the Enchanted Forest. As a child, Emma had remembered all the stories her mother had told about her Aunt Red during the time Snow White was still running from the clutches of the Evil Queen.

"You Aunt Red was a strong woman," her mother had said. "She helped me when I was at my weakest despite knowing I was running away from the Queen. She risked her life for me, and so I did, for her."

Back then, Emma had not known what her mother meant when she 'risked her life' for Aunt Red but now with the book, everything was clear.

"Why haven't I seen Aunt Red before?" Emma remembered asking her mother.

"You did, once. But you were too young to remember," Snow had smiled. "Don't worry, Emma. She will be present for your fifth birthday celebration."

But her Aunt Red never did and although curiosity ate at her, Emma had just brushed it off lightly, focusing on the party like all five year olds would. And now twenty three years later, it just occurred to Emma that back then during her fifth birthday celebrations, she had been wishing her birthday wish upon the bright full moon hanging in the ominous sky.

"Hello, Earth to Emma?"

Emma snapped out of her reverie as she came crashing back to reality to see Henry and Ruby grinning at her.

"What're you thinking about?" Henry asked and Ruby smirked.

"Yeah, share those fantasies."

Emma laughed and slapped Ruby lightly on the arm. "Hey! Keep it PG rating, kid's here!"

Even though she had only been here two days, Ruby and her had begun to warm up to each other with the blonde's frequent trips to the diner to settle all her three meals (and snacks). It she was honest, Emma would say she enjoyed Ruby's company and that somewhere in between the brunette's flirtatious teases and strong sex appeal, there was a hint of Aunt Red in her.

Ruby merely laughed and returned to work, leaving the two to their business.

"Walk me to school?" Henry grinned.

And despite herself, Emma found herself eagerly agreeing.

[-]

"Well? Are you going to stand there like a twig on display?" Regina snapped as she leaned back in her chair, eyes burning holes into the reporter who was shuffling on his feet nervously in front of her desk.

Sidney Glass snapped at attention at the Mayor's voice and handed her a brown envelope.

"M-Madame Mayor," he cleared his throat. "These are some photographs I have taken since Saturday and with it, some documents about her history too."

Regina said nothing as she flipped through the documents before browsing the photographs, ire boiling as Sidney's lenses captured how Emma had been the one to walk Henry to school today.

"She's currently staying at Granny's B&B," Sidney added. "It seems she has booked a room for a week."

Clenching her first, Regina glared at the contents spilled on her desk. This insolent woman must be stopped.

"Sidney," Regina calmly intoned in a voice so sultry it brought a chill of pleasure down the man's spine. "Since our dear Ms. Swan is _so _adamant on staying, we make her stay."

Sidney nodded slowly, trying to get the gist of what the woman was saying as Regina leaned forward, revealing ample cleavage.

"_Elsewhere, _do you understand?"

"Y-y-yes, Madame Mayor," Sidney stammered, quickly gathering his bearings. "I'll see to it immediately."

As Regina watched the flustered man exit her office, she smiled satisfyingly. No one can stop her from getting what she wants.

[-]

Emma flopped on the bed and closed her eyes. After all that talk with Henry on the way to his school about Operation Cobra, she still had no idea where to start or how to go about breaking the curse. But she did have a lead.

Holding up the postcard in front of her, Emma studied the picture of Storybooke's clock tower and the words in fancy font "Welcome to Storybrooke". When she had shown the postcard to Henry earlier before after he asked how she knew about the existence of Storybrooke (since it wasn't down on any map), he had only furrowed his brows in confusion.

"Where'd you get this?" He had asked, examining it in the same fashion she was going now.

Emma had shrugged. "Believe it or not, a pigeon sent it to my windowsill."

"I don't doubt that," He grinned before turning his attention back to the postcard. "There is only one place in this town where you can get this postcard."

"Where?"

"Mr. Gold's pawnshop."

Recalling the conversation, Emma wondered who this Mr. Gold is. _And most importantly, who is he in the book? _She decided that if she wanted answers, she had to see this man for herself. Quickly, Emma sprung out of the bed and grabbed her red jacket before heading to Granny's, intent on asking Ruby where this pawnshop was and grab a donut as lunch on the way.

"Ruby," Emma asked the brunette once she placed the order. "Do you happen to know where Mr. Gold's pawnshop is?

Ruby gave her a look. "What business do you have with him?"

"Just curious."

Leaning in and dropping her voice to a whisper, Ruby said, "You don't wanna mess with that guy. He owns this place."

Emma raised an eyebrow. "The diner?"

"No, the _town_."

[-]

Clutching her donut bag and following the directions that Ruby gave her (which was just one street down), Emma found the pawnshop and peered in. To her disappointment, it was dark and seemed empty.

_Strange, _Emma thought as she ran her eyes through the glass among the vast variety of objects the pawnshop has. Who was this man that possessed so many weird items and kept them in a shop? Instinctively, she brought a hand to the door handle and tried. To her surprise, it wasn't locked. Looking around, Emma observed how the street was relatively empty.

_Dare I…?_

It was a huge risk because: one, she does not know who the man was, a friend or a fiend? And two, she had no idea what she was looking for. But this was her only lead and maybe there was a clue of some sort hidden somewhere in this musty shop. Besides, what is success without failure? Throwing caution to the wind, Emma pushed the door handle down and entered.

Just as she took a step in, a voice from behind startled her.

"And what do you think you are doing?"

Jumping, she turned swiftly around and cursed her luck when she saw a brunet man standing behind her, the Sheriff's badge well clipped on his belt.

"Jesus, you scared the hell out of me."

"Guilty conscience?" The accented man asked, face stoic.

"What should I be guilty for?" Emma retorted, remembering a lesson from long time ago. _First rule after getting caught, never admit you were wrong in the first place. _

"For breaking into a shop."

"Breaking in? Sheriff, this shop was open."

The Sheriff took a step forward and pointed to the large sign hanging behind the glass door, the words "CLOSED" obvious to anyone who walked past. "You're not fooling anyone, Miss."

Emma feigned shock. "But I thought it was open!"

The Sheriff shook his head. "I'm sorry but you're under arrest for trespassing."

"What?" Emma protested, outraged. "You can't do that!"

"I can and I will, it is the law," the Sheriff replied. "Now do you want to do this the hard or easy way?"

[-]

The bed was hard underneath her skin as Emma sat in the cell, staring at the Sheriff whose name she learned was Graham. She knew it was a big risk and honestly had not expected to fail, but to be in jail for such a minor offence was ridiculous. She had not even been caught rummaging through the shop, for goodness sake.

"Aren't you guys a little harsh on the rules here?"

Graham looked up from his paperwork at her, his emotionless eyes boring into her hazel ones and sighed.

"We don't make the rules here."

Emma frowned. "Aren't you in the sheriff's department? If it's not you guys, then who does?"

"I do."

The sultry voice floated from the doorway and both pairs of heads turned to see Regina posing there, her gaze solely focused on the blonde. Heels making repetitive clicks on the floor, she made a beeline straight to the cell.

"Leave us, Sheriff," Regina instructed and Emma watched as Graham obeyed, leaving the two of them alone.

Walking to the bars, Emma tried to control her anger. _Of course it was the Mayor. _No wonder everything about the arrest seemed so fishy.

"Enjoying your stay, Ms. Swan?" Regina grinned evilly. "If the colours of the sheets aren't to your taste, just inform Graham. I'm sure he can bring you a variety of sheets to choose from different shades of grey."

She laughed at her own joke and Emma gripped the bars tightly.

"I should have known it was you all along," Emma snarled.

"Well, if not me, who else?" Regina replied, stalking over to stand by the bars till they were practically breathing in each other's faces. "Someone needs to stop your little antics."

Emma glared at the brunette woman, feeling nothing but hate.

"You are _fucking _crazy."

"And I'm so glad yet another side of you comes out: uncouth and peasantry. Enjoy your stay Ms. Swan." Regina leaned forward, spitting the words into Emma's face before turning and preparing to leave the station.

"You're not the Queen, you know."

Emma smirked as she watched the Mayor freeze in her steps, knowing her words will have effect. It took a moment before Regina slowly turned around and glared.

"Trust my words Ms. Swan, if I was, you wouldn't be standing there and talking to me right now."

With that, stalked out of the station, leaving Emma fuming after her.

[-]

She spent a night in that goddamned cell and by the afternoon of the second day, Emma was exhausted and famished. Graham had only given her 2 miserable packets of crackers that made up for dinner and breakfast and Emma had finished both packets in fifteen minutes. Glancing around the empty sheriff station, Emma lay back on the bed and gave a loud groan. _Regina Mills is going to die, _she grudgingly thought just as the door to the station opened and Graham stepped in. He was not alone.

"Emma!"

Henry came running through the entrance toward the cell and Emma bolted up to meet him by the bars.

"Kid! What're you doing here?"

"I asked Ms. Blanchard bailed you out!"

That was when Emma noticed the pixie haired brunette standing behind Henry and smiling gently at her. Taken aback, both by emotions and shock, Emma stuttered.

"Y-you shouldn't have, Mary Margaret, you hardly know me."

"But I know that you are Henry's birth mother," Mary Margaret only smiled wider. "I trust you."

For the first time since she came to Storybrooke, Emma let genuine emotion manifest on her face as she broke into a huge smile, eyes filled with gratitude. But that lasted only a fraction of a second as she turned toward the Sheriff and smirked.

"Well, Sheriff?"

Graham reached for his keys and stepped toward the cell, unlocking its door. "Rules are rules."

"There is also one more thing," Henry spoke, low as Emma stepped out of the cell, grinning.

"What?"

Henry flushed and looked away, unable to meet his birth mother's eyes. "You see… I overheard my mom talking on the phone last night and she terminated your stay at the Granny's B&B."

"Yes," Mary Margaret nodded. "We passed by the diner before arriving here and Granny's asking for you. Said something about a 'no felons' rule."

Just like that, the smile was dissolved from Emma's face and she clenched her fists in silent anger. That _bitch_. She would take care of the Mayor later, Emma decided. For now, she had a bigger problem at hand. As if reading her mind, Mary Margaret opened her mouth to speak.

"There is a spare bedroom in my apartment," The brunette smiled. "If you don't mind."

Emma nervously glanced back and forward between Mary Margaret's hopeful gaze and Henry's wide grin, who no doubt is prompting her to accept.

"You're too generous, you already bailed me out," Emma replied, fixing her gaze on the floor and not wanting to meet what is sure to be a crestfallen face. "I don't want to be a freeloader or anything."

"Trust me, you won't," the playful tone in Mary Margaret's voice took Emma by surprise and she looked back up at the woman. "I'll make sure you do the dishes."

She watched as Henry laughed and Mary Margaret winked, breaking out into a smile.

"Oh great, because Iabsolutely _adore _washing dishes," Emma returned the wink as the trio headed out of the station.

As Henry slipped his hand into hers and grinned widely at her, Emma cannot help but feel her heart swell and that maybe, just _maybe_, she made the right choice after all.

[-]

Emma unpacked the last of her things as she looked around and took in the state of the neat and pretty apartment.

"I'm sorry if it's a little small…" Mary Margaret gestured around hesitantly.

"Oh no, please," Emma laid a reassuring hand on the other woman's arm. "I cannot thank you enough for your offer and trust me, I've lived places not even the size of half of this apartment."

Mary Margaret laughed and watched the blonde unpack. It had shocked and surprised even herself when she made that offer to the blonde back at the sheriff's station. Sure, helping people had always been a passion for her but somehow or somewhere in between the short conversations she had with Emma at the laundry room back at Granny's or when she blonde walked Henry to school, Mary Margaret cannot help but feel a pull towards the other woman.

Being of curious nature, she had tried to explore it and she found that it was neither romantic nor platonic. It was almost as if there was a connection, like the kind Henry had said of his book. But fairytales aren't real and Mary Margaret shook her head to clear her thoughts. That was when she noticed the blanket Emma had fished out of her luggage and perched on a chair.

Quickly stalking over and picking it up, Mary Margaret held it in her hands, overwhelmed by an unknown emotion.

"Where did you get this?"

The sudden near proximity of her roommate's voice startled her and Emma jerked up, before noticing what the brunette was holding.

"Uh, that's my baby blanket. I had it since young."

Emma studied Mary Margaret as the brunette ran her fingers over the white yarn and embroidered name "EMMA" on it. Then to her shock, Mary Margaret brought it to her nose and closed her eyes, gently inhaling. All at once, Emma's heart rate picked up and she wondered if this was enough to break the curse, to make her mother remember her again.

"It smells like… home."

The soft voice of Mary Margaret's reply washed a mild disappointment over her and Emma let out a breath she had not known she was holding. Receiving the baby blanket from Mary Margaret, Emma just smiled and turned away, not wanting the pixie haired brunette to see the tears that had involuntarily gathered there.

[-]

Regina sat in her study and gazed absentmindedly at the cackling fire in front of her, sipping from a glass of her cider. Dinner had been a silent affair with Henry, like all the other dinners. Where did all those times go, she wondered, swirling her drink. The times where Henry would shyly go up to her and ask if he could help with dinner and when she agreed, would then excitedly bob up and down helping in any way he could. Usually he would make a mess and they would end up calling pizza instead. Even as Henry got older, dinners between the two of them had always consisted of his incessant chatter about school and Regina just basking in his energy.

But recently he had closed himself off and concerned, Regina had sent him to Archie for therapy. It got progressively worst when that darn Snow White gave him the stupid book, and now there was even a birth mother in the picture. Closing her eyes and leaning back into the couch, Regina sighed. It was only rare times like these when she was sure no one was watching that she allowed her stoic façade to break down, allowing her troubles to manifest themselves on her. Just then, heavy and continuous pounding on her front door startled Regina and she cursed, almost spilling her drink.

Glancing at the clock, she fumed. _Whoever the hell that is for deciding to come over this late is dead, _Regina thought storming toward the door. Flinging it open, she was shocked to see Emma Swan but masked it in time.

"Well, what do we have here? Looks like someone left their humble abode didn't she, Ms. Swan?" Regina mocked.

Emma glared at the brunette and snarled, "Cut the crap, Madame Mayor. We're going to settle this once and for all."

Regina folded her arms. "Settle _what_?"

"Your attempt, which is useless I must add, to drive me out of this town."

"Just because you have found a place under the rickety roof of Ms. Blanchard's does not mean I have other ways."

"How did you know?"

At Emma's look of shock, Regina cannot help but smirk. "You forget Ms. Swan, I have eyes everywhere. Nothing escapes my knowledge."

She turned to slam the door but a firm hand stopped her and Regina looked up into fiery hazel eyes with rage.

"Get your hands off my door, Ms. Swan!"

"Don't think that by slamming this door, I'm gonna let you get away with it," Emma growled, sick and tired of the attitude and tricks the Mayor had been pulling on her.

"Mark my words," Regina said, stepping up close to the blonde until their faces were only mere inches apart. "I am the last person to back down from a fight and the only person to win it. So I suggest you get _off _my porch and make your merry way back to wherever you came from. This town does _not _welcome strangers, especially strangers like you. Good night, Ms. Swan."

With that, Emma was faced with the closed door and a lock turned. Stepping off, she made her way back to her bug.

_Rage the war, Madame Mayor. _

[-]

Emma found herself sitting at the counter of Granny's again three days later, exasperated and sighing. She had conveniently avoided the Mayor's way and only communicated with Henry via the walkie-talkie, thinking that if she had some space, maybe there would be a way she could handle this mess without Regina finding any fault in her actions. But so far, Emma had come up with nothing and she was close to the brink of insanity. What was worst, and mysteriously so, was that this Mr. Gold had yet to show his face at his pawnshop and Emma wondered what was this guy's deal and if he was a major character back in the Enchanted Forest or not.

"A box of donuts, please," an accented voice spoke up and Emma turned to see the Sheriff.

"No lunch?" She asked, glancing at the clock which showed a half hour after one in the afternoon.

The Sheriff shook his head and gave a hint of a smile, a first Emma had seen. "I like donuts."

"So do I," Emma replied, making idle patterns on the plate with the crumbs of the bear claw she had finished what seemed like years ago.

The Sheriff eyed her for a long time and Emma felt herself growing self-conscious. "What?"

Graham did not answer immediately, only stroking his stubble. "I thought you'd have gone by now."

Rolling her eyes, Emma scoffed, "Because everyone is brainwashed by the Mayor that strangers cannot stay."

Emma had expected the Sheriff to turn hostile (he was her loyal employee after all, seeing what he did to her before), but to her surprise, Graham only gave a hum.

"I've never thought about that possibility before, but yes, our Mayor does value high security against newcomers to our town. We hardly get strangers, after all."

"More like high 'get the hell out of my stupid town'," Emma muttered under her breath then sighed loudly. "Whatever she's doing, I honestly don't give a shit. I've got bigger problems on my hands right now."

"Like?"

Emma shrugged. "Like, my finances. My savings from the previous job I had in Boston are running out and if I don't find a job soon, I will really become a freeloader."

Graham nodded and thanked Ruby when the waitress came over to hand him his donuts before turning back to Emma.

"Say," Graham started. "I just happen to have a vacancy at the station. It's only me there."

Emma raised an eyebrow, suspicious of his motives. "Isn't being the sheriff of a small town a one man job? Low crime and all."

"Paperwork's piling. I need the help, you need the money, fair trade?" Graham smiled.

Emma considered her choices: if she accepted the job, she would have a better reason to stay and be around Henry _and _continue with her mission. Although she was not sure whose side Graham's side was on (was he one of the Evil Queen's head guards?), she _really _did need the money.

Returning the smile, Emma stood.

"So, when can I start?"

[-]

"Wow, this place needs cleaning."

Emma commented as they stepped into Graham's office at the sheriff's station and Graham grinned sheepishly.

"Tidiness is not my forte," he replied setting his donuts on the desk. "Would you like a tour?"

And as Graham pointed out the locations of where different documents and objects are placed, along with a brief outline of her job, Emma tried her best to familiarize herself with the place and its operations.

"So I'll just be an assistant in here?" She asked.

Graham stared back at her blankly. "What're you expecting?"

Emma gave a casual smile and leaned back in the chair at her new desk.

"Well, I've been a bail bondsperson, I could help you out with police business."

"So you want to participate in fighting crime?" Graham raised an eyebrow and Emma cannot help but laugh.

"Hmm, 'Deputy' would be a fancier name than 'assistant'."

Before Graham could reply, the phone to the sheriff's station rang and Graham left Emma to her own ministrations as he went to answer. Moments later he came back out from his office and gestured for Emma to follow him as he grabbed his coat.

"Where are we going?" Emma asked.

"Looks like you got your first case already," Graham smiled. "Deputy Swan."

* * *

**A/N: Okay I know it's quite a slow burn but I need a little build up before I can carry out with the dynamics of their relationship. Bear with me and thank you for all who have read, F&F and reviewed! All mistakes are mine. **


	4. Chapter 3

**Warning: A little bit of non-consent later in the chapter. Do take note.**

* * *

**Chapter 3 **

They rushed to the hospital as quick as the dependable, old Sheriff's car can take them. By the time they got to the ER, there was already a crowd of people gathered there consisting of nurses, doctors and, much to Emma's annoyance, the Mayor.

"Doctor," Graham greeted. "I was informed of the missing John Doe?"

"Yes," the doctor whose name tag read 'Whale' replied. "He was last seen at around ten in the morning when the nurses were doing their rounds."

"And the John Doe was previously hospitalized for a long period of time under a coma, am I right?"

Dr. Whale nodded. "No signs of waking up, either. It's like he just upped and left."

Emma took a deep breath and fixed her eyes at the hospital bed with its unmade sheets. Henry had told her about the John Doe in a coma at the hospital of course, her _father_. And that bed was the very same one that her father had lay on for… well, ever since the curse started. Emma watched as Graham scribbled notes on his notebook as she looked around. "Do you have any security cameras in here? Maybe we could run through them to get more information."

When she spoke, Dr. Whale stared at her as if acknowledging her presence for the first time before clearing his throat.

"We do," Dr. Whale replied before a nurse gestured for him and he politely excused himself, stating he will be back.

Just then Regina spotted them and she made a beeline for the Sheriff, all the while shooting a dirty look at Emma.

"Sheriff, I'm glad you came here just in time," Regina started before glaring at Emma. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm the Deputy."

When she said that, Emma cannot help the smirk that formed on her face as she watched the Mayor's dark gaze penetrate Graham before she seemingly schooled herself.

"Since you're so keen on staying by getting a job," Regina straightened. "You might as well make yourself useful around here, _Deputy_."

She spat the title out like it was bitter in her mouth and Emma flinched before she realized something.

"What are _you_ doing here, then? Last time I checked, the hospital is not under your direct control, _Mayor_."

"I am that John Doe's emergency contact; I have every right to be here," Regina rolled her eyes as if the mere motion of questioning her was absurd.

Processing this new information, Graham asked, "How are you his emergency contact?"

"I am the one who found him at the side of the road years ago," Regina turned to glare at him. "No document of identification whatsoever, just heavy bleeding on the head. Of course I sent him to the hospital, and he has been here ever since."

"It's strange, isn't it," Emma folded her arms and narrowed her eyes at the brunette. "How every single thing that happens in this town is somehowrelated to you one way or the other?"

Regina took one step forward. "What are you trying to insinuate, Ms. Swan?"

Not willing to back down, Emma stepped up to the Mayor's game until she was in the brunette's personal space. "Nothing, but I must say, only the _guilty _feel that way."

At that moment, the two women were interrupted by Dr. Whale who came running up.

"Sheriff, Deputy," he started. "The security room is just around the back. That's where all the footages of security cameras are kept."

Shooting one last glare toward Regina, Emma nodded before following Graham and Dr. Whale out of the room.

"Oh, and Ms. Swan?"

Emma balled her hands into fists as she recognized that gloating tone that accompanied the Mayor's voice every time she pronounced her name.

"_What_?"

"Keep my shirt," Regina smiled none too nicely. "Consider it a consolation prize."

With that she gave a low chuckle and stalked off, knowing full well Emma lost this time round. Again.

[-]

Emma sighed as she set her feet up on her desk, one hand clutching a donut while the other flipped through files. It had been a day and there was still no sign of her father, otherwise known in this land as the missing John Doe. Graham and her had spent over two hours poring over the video footage the hospital caught, which had not been much of a help. The area around the hospital had been thoroughly searched too and even the nearby woods, all to no avail.

"Dammit," Emma cursed as she lightly threw the file onto her desk. "How do we find him with so little information?"

She glanced at Graham who had pulled a chair to sit opposite her.

"Don't look at me," he shrugged. "You signed up for this."

Dusting her hands off the donut crumbs, Emma stood up and paced the room.

"There has _got _to be somewhere where we can start from…" She wondered out loud.

"Sheriff…?"

Both heads turned to the doorway to see Regina standing there looking as immaculate as ever, and alongside of her, a blonde woman. Stalking forward, the Mayor gave a look close to disgust at the box of donuts before glancing at the files.

"How is the work going, Deputy?"

Emma fought an urge to roll her eyes and pursed her lips. "Better than expected," she lied through her teeth. Anything is better than another flood of mockery from the Mayor at being incapable of doing her job.

Regina gave a little smirk.

"I sure hope you are, Deputy. You see," the brunette gestured to the blonde lady beside her. "This is Kathryn Nolan, the wife of the missing John Doe, otherwise known as David Nolan."

It was as if her world screeched to a halt as Emma took in what Regina said, turning toward Kathryn with a stunned expression. It was ridiculous and yet, it just _was_. Henry had said the Evil Queen cast the curse to get her own happy ending and to take away everyone else's; this is probably one of the broken many. Emma was so caught up in her thoughts that she only came back to consciousness when Graham spoke.

"Wife? But he has been in the hospital all this while and you didn't come to identify him?" Graham addressed Kathryn.

Kathryn swallowed, her blue eyes turning glassy. "I didn't know he was in the hospital. We were having an argument before he exited the house and I thought… I thought he left me."

"I see," Graham nodded. "Well then I will need you to come and fill out some forms about him for us."

Kathryn wiped her tears and agreed, following Graham into the Sheriff's office.

Emma turned to glare at Regina as she approached her.

"What the fucking hell is this, Madame Mayor?" Emma hissed ferociously.

Regina blinked. "Excuse me, but I have no idea what you're on about."

"Oh, really? Isn't it strange that this John Doe has been hospitalized in God knows how long and it's only _now_, that someone steps up and claims she's her wife? And isn't it even stranger that this woman was brought in by _you_?"

"If you are looking for a commentary on your efforts on how those notices with descriptions of our John Doe helped, good job," Regina gave another mayoral smile before it was dropped as quickly as it appeared and her lips turned into a snarl. "However if you insist on staying unprofessional, just bear in mind that you were the one who forced me into action in the first place."

Emma watched the brunette give a nod to Kathryn before preparing to leave. Oh no, she is not going to let the Mayor off the hook this time round.

"I know what game you're playing at," Emma called to the brunette's back. "Your _Majesty_."

Emma grinned unabashedly as she saw Regina's back stiffened and the Mayor froze in her tracks, caught completely off guard. Her grin only grew wider when the brunette turned slowly with effect, her glare burning in a hole in Emma's jade eyes.

"What did you say?" Her voice came out a dangerous whisper and Emma knew better than to answer. But being the defiant one, she knew even better than to not answer.

Emma gave a smug smile. "I'm not gonna let you get away with this, Regina."

Regina just gave her a cold, hard stare as if waiting for the blonde to continue. When she did not, the Mayor only huffed and left, leaving Emma to gloat after her.

[-]

"So you didn't go talk to him?"

Emma looked back into Henry's large brown eyes and shook her head. They were sitting side by side at Henry's castle, just idly watching the sea and pretending that they were a normal pair of persons who weren't hiding from reality nor running on a time limit. After an exhausting cat-and-mouse chase between rushing to the place David Nolan had been last spotted and figuring out where his next location can be for two days (who knew finding an amnesiac could be _that _fun), it was finally Mary Margaret who suggested he could be at Toll Bridge. Sure enough, Emma had found him there; tracing the path of his own footsteps in circles.

When she brought David Nolan back, no one really bothered to ask how or why, they were all just relieved that a missing patient was back and everyone's lives can go back to normal. Especially Kathryn Nolan, whose gratitude and tears toward the Mayor and Emma herself stretched more than how Emma would have liked. But Emma knew the truth. She saw it as plain as day, the look on Mary Margaret's face and subtle stare from David on his part when Kathryn rushed into his arms and planted a huge kiss on his lips. It was the look of something that was there once, but now isn't.

"No," Emma sighed, returning back to the present. "I mean, he doesn't remember being my father. What's the use?"

"Emma, they're starting to remember and it's all because of you," Henry urged. "Ms. Blanchard told me you were the one who urged her to read the story to him and _that's _how he woke up! You have to continue doing what you're doing so that the curse can be broken and the Evil Queen can be defeated!"

"That's the point kid," Emma ran a hand through her curls in frustration. "I don't even know what the hell I'm doing! I'm just going about my life and all these things happen and… I just don't know. Plus, your mother is not making it any easier for me."

She gave a side glance at Henry before turning to face his large grin.

"What?"

"You just said it, Emma."

"Said what?"

"What you're doing, is just being who you _are_. That's what makes you the Saviour!"

Emma let Henry's word sink in. Somewhere beneath all the actions she had done, she knew there was always a certain pull as to how she managed to go about doing it. In fact, she had been doing it all her life. Some people call it a gut feeling; others, imagination. But maybe, just maybe right here in Storybrooke, it is something else entirely. _Fate_.

They sat for a little while more before Emma glanced at her watch and signaled it was time to go.

"I wish I could spend more time with you in the open," Henry said sadly as they jumped from the ledge. "I hate sneaking around."

"Then maybe you could just ask me."

The duo snapped their heads up in shock as Regina Mills stood before them a couple of feet away, regal and poised. Caught like a deer in the headlights, Emma froze with her mouth open, unable to form any excuse or reason. Beside her, Henry kept silent too, unsure of his mother's unpredictable actions.

Regina walked coolly up to them and pulled Henry to her side, glaring at Emma first before turning to face her son.

"Henry, go and wait in the car for me."

Henry stood there, defiant. "What are you going to do to her?"

Emma felt a tingle run down her spine as Regina turned to look at her, "Ms. Swan and I are going to have a little chat."

Giving a little reassurance to Henry with a nod, Emma exhaled through her mouth as Henry ran to the black Mercedes and slammed the car door behind him.

"Well Madame Mayor, you caught me. Go ahead, scream and do whatever you want. Just don't drag Henry into our disputes."

Regina gave a mirthless laugh. "On the contrary, I'm here to extend an invitation to you."

"An invitation?" Emma raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, to dinner."

The shock registered on Emma's face and she immediately jumped to a defensive mode. "Why?"

"_Don't_, for a second, think that I am trying to apologize for whatever reason you made up in your head," Regina huffed. "I am only doing this for Henry."

Emma studied the woman in front of her and for a millisecond thought that Regina Mills looked insecure about her offer. But like all the other looks that hinted even a slightest bit of emotion on her face, that disappeared quickly enough and Emma was looking into the stoic face of the Mayor again. It was a tough decision, Emma decided. On one hand, she could spend at least an extended time with Henry without having to hide from the brunette (even though it was technically under Regina's watch); on the other, this was the Evil Queen talking. Who knew what sorts of tricks she had up her sleeve.

"Well?" Regina's impatient answer prompted Emma to make a quick decision.

"Fine," Emma conceded. "For Henry."

Regina smiled, although it wasn't a pleasant one. "Good, I hate it when people reject me anyway." And Emma rolled her eyes.

"Tomorrow at six. Sharp."

Then Regina leaned in so close that for a moment, Emma had the craziest idea the Mayor was going to kiss her.

"I think you should know by now Ms. Swan," Regina chuckled lowly, her breath gently hitting against Emma's cheek. "A queen never waits."

[-]

Emma arrived at the mansion at six in the evening sharp, as instructed. She had left a note to Mary Margaret not to wait up for her before leaving the apartment. Sure, Mary Margaret was her mother even if the pixie haired brunette did not know it, but sometimes even she acted so much like a mother it made her uncomfortable.

Despite her cool exterior, the blonde was a nervous wreck inside and she silently thanked her lucky stars when it was Henry who bounded up and answered the front door.

"Hey Emma!" He grinned widely. "I'm so glad you can come!"

Emma returned a smile and looked around. "Where's your mom?"

As if on cue, Regina's voice floated from the kitchen. "Henry! Have you set the table?"

"Coming!" Henry hollered back before giving an apologetic glance to Emma and speeding off to the dining room.

Making her way to the kitchen, Emma paused in her steps as the Mayor came into view. Although the brunette had her back to her, the unmistakable apron over the usual power suits did make the menacingly imperturbable woman look close to the term 'harmless' and Emma had to stifle her laugh with a cough. The small noise alerted Regina and she whirled around.

"Ms. Swan," Regina greeted with a nod, hands reaching behind her back to undo the apron strings. "And here I was, expecting you to be late."

Emma rolled her eyes in response. She had come to this dinner with intent to be civil for the night but this woman was definitely not going to make things easy for her.

"Do you need any help?"

Regina looked at her for a moment, as if surprised by the genuine offer. Then she gestured toward the oven.

"Take the chicken out and dinner can start."

The three of them sat around the dining table looking so normal Emma had wondered for a second if she was in a parallel world. The only sounds emitted were the occasional clanks of metal against porcelain and the crunching of salad, topped with Henry's incessant chatter about school.

"… Ms. Blanchard even showed us a clip from Disney's Snow White today!"

In her peripheral vision, Emma saw Regina stiffen with her fork halfway to her mouth. Smirking a little, Emma continued the conversation on purpose just to irk the brunette.

"That's nice, kid. Which scene of the movie did she show you?"

"The part on how the Evil Queen wanted to kill Snow White because she was jealous of her beauty! And everyone was like-"

"Henry, that's enough."

Regina's cold voice cut through his bubbly one like a knife, and Henry immediately stopped and glanced at Emma, suddenly remembering that his adopted mother was the Evil Queen in his book. Regina turned her glare onto Emma.

"Ms. Swan, maybe you could tell that _roommate _of yours not to plant ridiculous ideas in children's minds. As if the book wasn't enough, now even movies are being shown."

Emma hid her annoyance behind a shrug. "What can I say, she's doing her job."

"Then she is failing at it," Regina crossed her arms and locking Emma in a death stare. "Like how she fails at other things."

The second statement came out as a mutter but Emma heard it all the same. "Why do you hate Mary Margaret so much, Regina?"

The question raised another flame of fire in Regina's eyes and that was not tamed by Henry's reply either.

"Because she is the Evil Queen, that's why."

"Henry," Regina's voice was gentler but stern. "Go to your room. Now."

He didn't need prompting, just scraping his chair as he leapt and ran up the stairs, the slam of his bedroom door the only sign of his anger.

Regina closed her eyes and rubbed her temples. She had been seeing how Henry was always so happy with the blonde but emotionless with her. It hurt to know that it took Emma to get Henry smiling but Regina was willing to put down her pride for her son and that was why she invited Emma to dinner in the first place, thinking that it could at least be of little help for her to reach out to her son more. But now it clearly had been for the worst, she should never have invited that irritating blonde. Sounds of movement distracted her from her thoughts and she flashed her eyes open to see Emma attempting to clear the unfinished dinner.

"Do not touch the plates," Regina gave a warning growl and Emma stopped.

"Look," the blonde started. "Kids have a little temper and you just go to-"

"Shut up!"

Regina's sudden shout stunned Emma and she stopped as the brunette got to her feet, advancing on her.

"All these happened because of you. Every single thing," Regina was seething as she stepped into the blonde's personal space. "You came bouncing into this town for whatever reason and spend time with _my _son, telling whatever stories to make him hate me. You think I don't know, hmm?"

Emma didn't reply as she looked back into dark brown orbs, her anger starting to fire up as well.

"I did _not _tell any stories, all I told was the truth."

"And what, pray tell, is the truth?"

"That you are a manipulative bitch who makes use of other people to get what you want," Emma hissed. "That you are so consumed and filled with hate, you fail to see what is the good in front of you. That if this were a story you are the villain and not just the villain, the _ultimate _villain, the one who inevitably dies in the end. And that I utterly _despise _you, for everything you have done."

Regina listened with burning ire as the blonde mocked her, and finally did the only thing rational her brain told her to do: hit. A tightly clenched fist landed straight on Emma's cheekbone and she cursed out loud, staggering a few steps backward and eyes widening in disbelief at the Mayor's action.

But anger soon clouded her vision and she came lunging at the brunette as well, grabbing the smaller sized woman by the shoulders and shoving her, Regina's back hitting the wall with a sickening thud. Roughly grabbing the Regina's collar, Emma used her arm to pin the brunette in place by the neck.

"You think you can get away with all this," Emma growled. "But you should know that villains _don't_ get happy endings."

Regina stopped struggling and gave a mirthless laugh. "If I'm the villain…"

Then with a surprising amount of strength, she shoved Emma's arm away and switched their positions, so that now the blonde was the one against the wall and struggling. Wrapping a hand around Emma's throat, Regina applied just a little bit of pressure that was enough for the blonde to choke and claw desperately at her hand.

"Who are you?"

Regina released the hold on Emma's neck and she gasped loudly, turning limp and panting. Regina had her pinned tightly against the wall and try as hard as she could, Emma could not summon the strength to break through the tight hold of the Mayor, whose body pressed uncomfortably in all the right places whenever she struggled.

"You think you're so smart, Deputy. But sometimes I think you're too smart for your own good."

As Regina leaned into Emma's ear to speak, Emma's breath hitched as the other woman's breasts conveniently flattened themselves against her own and she flushed. She flushed even harder when the Mayor retracted her head to look at her, mouth curved upwards in a salacious grin.

As if to test the waters, Regina forced Emma's jean clad legs apart with her own, brushing Emma's core with her bare knee. Emma bit her lip to stifle a moan, somewhere in between the rough shoves and overly close contact, her center had started to heat up and now with the brunette's teasing ministrations, it was demanding for further attention.

"My my, look at you," Regina mocked. "Who knew the Deputy would be such a _slut_?"

"You're a fucking bitch," Emma spat, ashamed at her body's reactions and also disgusted at the Mayor's actions. She struggled again but that only gave Regina more reason to press herself tightly against Emma, her knee continuously rubbing against Emma's center.

Emma's breaths became more uneven as she felt her panties getting more soaked by the minutes but she forced herself to glare back at Regina, whose hungry eyes never left her.

"You are the one who is seducing me," Emma gritted. "Look who's calling the kettle black."

Regina darted out a tongue to wet her blood red lips as she smiled. "At least you're admitting it."

Then she surged forward and captured the blonde's lips in hers, biting down until it drew blood. Emma's eyes widened in surprise and she found herself returning the kiss, sinking into the way the brunette's full lips felt against hers. When Regina's hands slid under her tank top and splayed its cool fingers over her heated torso, Emma finally came to her senses she pushed the brunette away from her, wiping the blood off her mouth. Regina only grinned wickedly, licking up the blood from her own lips.

"How pathetic," Regina drawled. "To think you would crave the touch of someone you despise. Your soul is even more depraved than mine."

Emma stood rooted to the spot and shut her eyes, memories of a life spent in the foster system came flooding through her mind. All the reasons why she could not talk to her parents and why she felt uncomfortable whenever Mary Margaret talked about having a family came swelling in her chest like a broken dam. The amount pent up anger came spilling out now was enough to fuel her emotion engine to the maximum as Emma glared at the woman in front of her who seemed to enjoy pushing every button she had.

"You want to play this game," Emma growled. "Let's play."

* * *

**A/N: I know it's quite late of an update but I was busy with Christmas preparations and all. Anyway, Merry Christmas and a Happy Holidays to everyone and a huge thank you to those who have read, reviewed and F&F! **


	5. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

"You want to play this game," Emma growled. "Let's play."

She crossed the room toward Regina in three quick strides and grabbed the brunette, roughly dragging her to the living room. Regina landed on her long couch with a yelp of surprise but did not have the chance to collect herself in time as Emma immediately pinned her down and straddled her thigh.

"You will never own me," Regina tried to shove the woman above her off but Emma only smirked.

Leaning down to the brunette's ear, Emma breathed hotly, "Who said I wanted to?"

Then Emma bit down on Regina's neck and the brunette gave an unexpected moan, silently cursing herself for such open display of wanton need for the blonde. Emma placed large open mouth kisses along Regina's neck to her collarbone, biting and sucking fervently along the way.

Below her, Regina chuckled lowly and Emma growled.

"What the fuck is so funny?"

"You say you didn't want to own me, yet here you are, marking me. But I shouldn't say I'm surprised, you do have a tendency to not wanting to admit who you reallyare. Am I right, _slut_?"

With a burst of anger, Emma ripped the silk blouse Regina was donning apart, buttons strewing all over the living room floor.

"Ms. Swan! That blouse is expen-"

Regina's indignant shout was cut off by Emma's tongue ravaging her mouth and the words died on her throat as the brunette succumbed and brought her hands under the blonde's tank top, gripping so hard it left contrasting red crescents on Emma's moonlight skin. Pulling away, Emma quickly shed Regina off her bra so that the only thing between them was her own tank top. Bringing herself down, Emma bit down on an already hardened nipple and took delight in Regina's gasp of pain as she alternated between biting and sucking. Regina gritted her teeth in a huge effort to keep silent but her needs betrayed her as she arched her back toward the contact, hands pushing on Emma's head and urging the blonde to move southward.

"Don't tell me what to do," Emma snapped, one hand grabbing both of Regina's wrists and pinning them above the brunette. Saying nothing, the brunette only smirked which proved to fuel Emma's anger.

Irritated at how Regina seemed to be enjoying every second of this no matter how Emma tried to inflict pain, the blonde could only think of one thing. Bringing her other hand under Regina's skirt, she pressed against the other woman's center lightly over her panties, which Emma could feel was already drenched. She ran a finger in small circles over the wet fabric, fixing her stare on Regina as the brunette bit her own lip, bringing her hips down to get more friction.

Regina started growing increasingly frustrated as the blonde pulled her finger back whenever she tried grinding down further on it. Just as she was about to demand, Emma pulled Regina's black panties down and bunched her skirt up in one swift movement, exposing her most private area. Regina took in a sharp intake of breath as Emma pressed one hard finger against her clit, the pleasure amounting to greater heights.

"So wet for me," Emma whispered as she dragged a fingernail against the brunette's clit and Regina gave a strangled cry which substituted as a moan.

"Is this what you always do, Madame Mayor?" Emma asked as she slipped a finger easily into Regina's slick folds and started pumping slowly.

"Seduce the people you need favours from and then spread your legs for them?"

Regina said nothing, only closing her eyes and concentrating on the feeling drawn out by Emma's index as the pumping started to speed up.

"I wonder who else got into your bed," Emma snickered, adding another finger and increasing her movements. "That male secretary of yours, perhaps? You'd definitely need him around for all that paperwork, don't you Mayor? The postman, even? Anyone else I know?"

Emma pushed a thumb onto Regina's clit and started stroking in circles repetitively, drawing a loud gasp from Regina as her eyes shot open and she started to move, already desperate.

"Stop teasing, Ms. Swan," Regina growled and Emma only smirked, glad she was having the upper hand. Regina's growl only turned into a hiss of anger when Emma withdrew her hand completely and met her thundering gaze with a steady glare.

"Beg for it."

Regina lay panting below the blonde, who was still fully clothed, feeling the flush of anger manifest on her reddened cheeks. In this beginning of fall, the only warmth her near naked body was getting is from Emma and frankly, she would rather freeze to death than surrender.

"Never," Regina curled her lips up into a sneer.

"Then go _fuck _yourself," Emma said and she shoved herself off the brunette none too gently, standing back and folding her arms.

The icy chill was the first thing Regina felt but the brunette did not even bat an eyelid, only training her glare at the blonde in front of her, a smirk forming on her face. Yes, her body was still heated up to a point and she certainly was very sexually frustrated, but if this was the game Emma wanted to play, so be it.

Emma watched as Regina positioned herself to a more comfortable position lying down, spreading her legs and bringing a hand to her own sex, rubbing slowly.

"Yes," Regina breathed and her eyes never left the blonde's, relishing in the fact that Emma's eyes never left her lower body region.

Emma felt herself getting more and more turned on by the minute, listening to Regina's soft moans and breathy words as she watched the brunette pump two fingers into herself at a constant pace. The lusty gaze that Regina kept on her was not helping either. The tightness of her jeans against her own burning need was not helping in the least. Her panties had been soaked before and she would not be surprised if the thick material of her jeans was now wet. Even shifting of her feet elicited an unexpected groan of pleasure as her jeans hit on her already swollen clit and Emma flushed, sure that Regina had heard her.

"Come…"

Finally finding the strength to look away from Regina's moving fingers, Emma brought her gaze to Regina and saw the brunette motioning to her with one finger.

"Come and fuckme, Deputy."

Emma's rational thoughts kept her rooted to the spot, but her five senses were almost on overload: the smell of Regina's musky arousal in the air, the grunts and moans increasing in volume each time, the feel of Regina on her sticky fingers, her tongue that was dying for a taste and a very naked and wanting Regina in front of her.

"Come for me," Regina's breathy whisper called out to her again and this time, Emma walked trancelike toward the brunette and straddled her like before.

Swatting Regina's hand away, Emma wasted no time as she drove three fingers into the brunette hard and fast and started pumping.

"Yes!" Regina gasped loudly, and urged the blonde on, rocking her hips to keep up with the friction. The gasp snapped something inside of Emma and she increased her pace in movements, remembering every mock and insult the brunette threw at her.

"Faster!"

And faster Emma did, grinding herself down hard on Regina's thigh, unable to control herself any longer. Finally adding a fourth finger, Emma grunted at how tight Regina felt around her fingers and she pumped incessantly, rubbing her thumb over Regina's clit and twisting her fingers, finally bringing Regina over the edge.

At climax, Regina bit down on Emma's bare shoulder to muffle her cries as she continuously rocked herself on Emma's fingers, trying to prolong her orgasm. The pain was what it took for Emma to come undone herself and she collapsed onto the brunette soon after, withdrawing her fingers from Regina.

They lay spent, slumped against each other on the couch and panting heavily for a while before Emma, realizing what she had done, scrambled off Regina.

"You bitch! You did this."

"Did what?" Regina gave a small mirthless laugh, her eyes still closed in bliss. "You did everything yourself, dear. And believe me, I would thank you, but that is if I wanted to."

Emma stared at the woman in front of her almost in disbelief before she searched the room for her red jacket and grabbed it.

"You disgust me," Emma spat as Regina collected herself, smoothing her skirt and then gathering her discarded clothing.

Regina only smirked before it turned into a visible scowl, "Try looking into the mirror, Ms. Swan and see who disgusts you more. Now get the hell out of my house."

Controlling the urge to hit the woman again, Emma only left and slammed the front door in her wake.

She let anger take the wheel as she sped through Main Street. It was only when she reached Henry's playground when she finally allowed her head to slump against the wheel, punching the leather seat beneath her repeatedly. The guilt and self-hatred washed over her like a tidal wave as she remembered the night's events and Emma gritted her teeth, the memories of Regina's smug smile and mocking insults an echo inside the cave of her head.

She hated to admit it but Regina was right, Emma thought bitterly. The only person who disgusted her more than anyone else in this world was ultimately herself. But she was not going to admit to something she was not taking the blame for.

Getting a grip of herself, Emma turned and headed back to the apartment.

_Well Madame Mayor, _Emma thought as she stepped on the accelerator, _if I'm disgusting, you're no better. _

[-]

The soft click of the lock caught Mary Margaret's attention and she breathed an internal sigh of relief as the blonde stepped in. Sure, Emma had told her that she was going to have dinner at Regina's house and told her not to wait up. Although surprised at first, Mary Margaret spared her roommate of the probing as she saw the open display of nervousness on Emma's features and she only bid her a good luck, jokingly warning her not to set the Mayor's house on fire.

She had intended on turning in early seeing that it was a school night, but halfway through the night, Mary Margaret had been hit with a sudden strong feeling right at her gut. She was unsure what it was obviously, it had never happened before. But somehow Emma floated through her mind and her worries, coupled with her situation with David Nolan (who was another strange case of this similar 'gut feeling'), Mary Margaret found herself sitting on the couch and flipping through magazines, occasionally glancing at the clock in wait for Emma. Sure enough, when Emma stepped in, Mary Margaret just knew her gut feeling had not failed her again.

Emma's face was the complete opposite of when she stepped out. The blanketed hopeful expression was now replaced with one of stoical fatigue.

"Mary Margaret? I told you not to wait up."

The tone says it all.

"Oh Emma, I-" Mary Margaret immediately strode toward her roommate and who had evolved to become her closest confidante during this period of time, feeling the urge to comfort her but was pierced as Emma stepped back and held her arms out.

"Don't," Emma cut in, fixing her eyes on the floor. She cannot face Mary Margaret, not with what she had just done and with the knowledge of the pixie haired brunette being her mother. She fucked the _Evil Queen _for God's sakes, the very same one that cursed them all to this dreaded land, her mother's worst enemy.

"Just… just let me sleep this one out."

Trying her best to mask the tone of hurt, Mary Margaret cleared her throat and stepped back herself.

"Al-alright, I should be getting rest too. Goodnight, Emma."

Mary Margaret trudged up the stairs. Emma had once told her that she reminded the blonde of her mother and they both had a good laugh at that, the brunette dubbing it a 'silly notion' but secretly feeling flattered. That statement did have some truth now that she reflected back on it. Something must have happened, Mary Margaret mused.

Emma did help her in more than ways of just housework. When she finally found the courage to express to the blonde how she felt toward David Nolan, who she repeatedly stressed "is a married man", and how she just knew that David had the same feelings toward her when they met on numerous occasions in secret, Emma only smiled and encouraged her to act on her feelings.

"Of course not like, you know, barge in and exclaim 'he's mine, bitch' kinda thing," Emma had explained. "Maybe, I don't know, talk it out with David and see how he intends to go on with this situation. I mean you guys can't be meeting in secret forever."

Mary Margaret knew she was right and that was something she will worry about later because in that moment, all she cared about was Emma's support and frankly, that was all that mattered.

But of course if Emma was not ready to talk about what happened, Mary Margaret wouldn't force her. Whatever it is, the pixie haired brunette knew she would be on the blonde's side. Besides, that is what mothers do, isn't it?

[-]

"Hey kid."

Henry whirled around to see his birth mother standing by the school gates and his face broke out into a huge grin as he weaved through the bunch of kids pouring out of the school to meet her.

"Emma? What're you doing here?"

"I heard from Mary Margaret that you're going to take the school bus home today so I figured I could take you to Granny's before fetching you home? I also needa ask you some stuff.."

"Awesome!" Henry replied as he bounded to the VW bug along with the blonde. Ever since the dinner four nights ago, his mother had made sure not to give any chance for him to see his birth mother, constantly opting to fetch him to and from school and keeping close tabs on him whenever he was home. However she had a meeting today and had told him to take the bus seizing the opportunity, Henry had told Mary Margaret, in hopes that she would get the hint. She is his grandmother, after all. Looks like his efforts had not went to naught.

As they sat with their hot chocolates in Granny's, Henry piped up.

"So what's it you wanna know?"

"The book," Emma started. "There was one chapter where the Evil Queen killed her father to get the heart of the thing she loves most in order to enact the curse… I was wondering if she brought her father along… to this land."

"Oh. Yeah," Henry replied easily, licking the whipped cream off his spoon. "Mom built a mausoleum for him in Storybrooke Cemetery, you can't miss it. She goes there every Wednesday."

Emma nodded, mentally taking notes.

"Why'd you wanna know?"

Considering her answer carefully, Emma made sure to sound as casual as possible. "Just some info for Operation Cobra." Then, she hesitatingly looked at Henry.

"So how's… what's your mom been up to?"

The boy shrugged. "The usual, I guess. Don't worry, if I notice anything suspicious that might be involved with Operation Cobra, I'll walkie-talk you straight away!"

Emma broke into a small smile and ruffled the boy's hair fondly. Cocking his head at Emma's sudden interest in his adopted mother, Henry questioned her.

"Did you and Mom get into a fight that night?"

Caught by surprise, Emma stuttered. "Wha-what?"

"I heard loud noises that night, but I wasn't so sure. Mom was in a foul mood that night, I didn't want to anger her further."

Well at least she pushed the Mayor's buttons far enough, Emma smirked inside. Even if the brunette did a damn fine job of hiding it.

"It was just a minor disagreement."

Henry narrowed his eyes before letting the subject drop altogether and focusing on his beverage, the rest of their afternoon spent together in mindless chatter.

[-]

Regina Mills stared at the Arial font size sixteen letters that spelled nonsensical gibberish in front of her and closed her eyes, rubbing her temples. She had been staring at this pile of paperwork without getting anything done. The thing that irritated her the most was the fact that she could not find any reason why she was feeling this way. Setting down her pen, she leaned back in her chair.

It absolutely has nothing to do with the Deputy, Regina assured herself as she whirled her chair around to gaze at her apple tree. Like hell she would let that infuriating and crass woman get under her nerves. She hated the blonde that was without a doubt, but it will not be a point where her professionalism will be jeopardized. Just then, a loud knock resounded on her office door and the Mayor sighed in annoyance.

"Come in!"

Having expected her secretary (the one she did _not _fuck, Regina internally added), she was a little surprised when Sidney came in and she sighed even more. Ninety percent of the news this man brought her was never good.

"Cut to the chase, I'm busy today."

"Madame Mayor," he started and Regina had to smile. At least this man was showing a smidgen of courage without stuttering in her presence today.

Sidney went up to her table and handed her a file.

"These are the photographs of the sinkhole that emerged in the abandoned mine shaft after that little tremor a few days ago that you asked for. It looks quite drastic and I suggest we get the sheriff's department to see to it immediately. It might pose as a potential danger for town residents."

"Don't tell me what to do," Regina snapped annoyed before realizing that those were the exact words Emma Swan had said to her the previous week during their fight. Shaking her head to clear thoughts of the blonde (_again_), Regina flipped through the pictures idly.

"I'll handle this," she said gathering up the photos and depositing them back into the file. "Anything else?"

Sidney shifted on his feet before clearing his throat again.

"I have some new information of Ms. Emma Swan's daily activities, if you're interested?"

Regina rolled her eyes. "Apart from clogging her arteries at Granny's and thinking she could get away with secretly meeting my son, what else?"

He reached for his camera, which was slung over his shoulder, and nervously glanced at the impatient brunette.

"She uh, I saw her yesterday around late evening… at your father's mausoleum."

A spark of anger immediately lit Regina's insides and her stare grew black, clenching her fists. "What the _hell _is she doing there? That building is locked."

"She must have broken in."

Regina pursed her lips. She was not surprised, though. After all, the blonde did have a jail record and God knows what other vices the woman had that was not documented.

Gulping, Sidney scrolled through some pictures on his camera before handing it to her.

"It was quite dark and I was too far away but she seemed to be poking around the building. Soon after, she was checking the ends of the tomb as well, as if searching for something along its edges."

Regina listened with growing fury as she flipped through the blurry pictures. It was hard to make out but it was there: a flash of blonde hair in every picture, crouching at various parts of the mausoleum seeming to be inspecting something. That woman actually had the _gall _to break into her father's mausoleum.

As she handed the camera back to Sidney and carelessly dismissed him, Regina knew something had to be done. If Emma Swan was poking around the only place she sought solace in, then she is not what she seems.

[-]

"Going out again?"

Mary Margaret turned to her roommate who came down the stairs dressed in her jeans and a black jacket, hair all tied up. It was nine in the evening and this was the second night in a row that Emma had gone out during this time.

"Yeah," Emma replied heading to the refrigerator for a drink. "Don't wait up."

"I won't if you promise you'll be okay."

Emma shot a small smile toward her roommate. Ever since the day when she finally decided to confide in Mary Margaret and gave a brief outline about what happened that night, she found that it was easier to refer Mary Margaret as a roommate rather than as her mother. Of course Mary Margaret had been shell shocked at first.

"Oh my god, did you guys…"

Emma had stopped at the part where she threw Regina on the couch and kept silent, letting Mary Margaret get the picture.

"Oh my god," was all she had said before urging her to continue. And that was about it on that topic, although Mary Margaret did urge her many times to have "the talk" with the Mayor.

"There is nothing to talk about," Emma had indignantly said and Mary Margaret just nodded.

"Well," her roommate replied. "If you need anything, don't hesitate to tell me. I will try my best to help."

Emma was grateful of course, because if this were her mother, she knew it would be a complete different story. Taking in the look of concern the brunette was giving her now, Emma nodded.

"Don't worry, MM," the blonde smiled again, gathering her things. "I'll be fine."

Then she left the apartment and drove into the silence of the night, one place in mind.

Pulling up a distance away from the cemetery, Emma crept stealthily toward the mausoleum and tried at the lock. It had been a tough and complicated one to pick, but with experience and the right tools, it became a job done easier. Sure enough, the soft click sounded just a while later and Emma stepped in the dark building. The book had mentioned of the Evil Queen having a vault of hearts that were so precious to her, or so quoted the book. It was impossible that Regina would have kept something like this within the property of her mansion, Emma had mused. So she had placed high bets that it would have something to do with the thing the Evil Queen loved most according to the book and she was right.

What she had not expected was when she read the neat bold font carved on the heavy stone: HENRY MILLS, BELOVED FATHER. Evil Queen or not, Emma knew that deep down, Regina did love Henry the best she could. She named him after the person she loved the most, after all. But of course, Emma was not going to let such a minor truth hinder her search for the vault. So far since the previous night, she had no luck and she was determined to find it this night.

Fumbling blindly in the dark, Emma finally found the protruding lever and flicked it to on the light switch.

"Hello, Ms. Swan."

"What the fuck!"

Emma jumped when the lights revealed a figure standing at the end of the tomb, a regal posture that one can hardly miss and a voice so deeply recognizable. The blonde watched as her heart thundered with trepidation while Regina took slow and determined strides toward her, her murderous glare burning holes in Emma's being.

_Oh god, I'm going to die here_, Emma thought as she stepped back until she hit the stone wall of the building. There was no more escape.

"I wasn't aware you knew my father personally that you would want to visit his grave," Regina said, her tone neutral but the warning undertone was obvious to anyone of hearing capability. "In the middle of the night at that."

Controlling her nerves and willing her pulse to slow down, Emma gave a casual shrug.

"Quit the sass. I happen to admire stone buildings and your father's mausoleum piqued my interest, is all."

"Oh, really?" Regina stepped closer. "You couldn't have just _admired _it from the outside, you just have to break in and snoop around for –what, zebras?"

Had this been a completely different scenario, Emma would have laughed and appreciated the other person's sense of humour. But this was Regina _fucking _Mills, the infamous Evil Queen. Nothing she said could be trusted, or so she was thought while growing up. Emma only shook her head and gave a small smirk.

"Why, Madame Mayor? You got something to hide?"

Regina stepped closer until they were only about a foot apart and Emma's breath inaudibly hitched. Ever since their previous encounter, she had made it a point to avoid Regina and it seems that Regina had been doing so too. Now in such close proximity and the memories of that night flashing through her brain, Emma could feel her body heating up.

"Tell me if I do, based on the time you spent searching this place the previous night." Regina's malicious grin stretched at Emma's widened eyes.

"That's right, Ms. Swan. Nothing escapes me, not even your little escapades with my son you think I have no knowledge of."

"So what're you gonna do about it? Murder me?"

"Oh my dear, you think you can get away with it so easily?"

Regina brought a hand to Emma's face and cupped her chin lightly before firmly gripping it and pulling the blonde forward. A sound of surprise escaped from her throat and Emma was caught by surprise a third time this night as Regina pressed her own lips to hers, forcing her tongue between the lips of the blonde and sucking fervently on Emma's tongue.

Pulling away just as suddenly as she kissed, Regina grinned as Emma panted breathless, her hazel eyes already darkening with lust and pupils so largely dilated.

"_This _is what I'm going to do about it," Regina said slowly.

Slipping a slender hand into the blonde's jeans, Regina cupped Emma's dripping sex and wasted no time in inserting a finger into the ready folds. Gritting her teeth, Emma brought her hands to the brunette's shoulders and clutched tightly, hips involuntarily grinding down on Regina's hand.

"You'd like this, hmmm?" Regina coaxed, bringing a thumb to Emma's bundle of nerves and rubbing in slow circles.

"Yesss," Emma hissed, immediately hating herself for it when she spied Regina's smirk widening and the brunette retracted her hand completely.

Whimpering at the loss of contact, Emma's nostrils flared with anger and irritation as she watched the brunette take a step back.

"What the _hell_, Regina?"

"Oh you'd so desperately want it, wouldn't you?" Regina taunted. "Now you know how I feel. But you know what? I am going to leave you wanting and needing and begging until you make sure you regret it after you're done. Fucking yourself, that is."

Then Emma gave a yell as the brunette grabbed her hand and dragged her out into the cold fall night.

"I suggest you better head home, Ms. Swan. We wouldn't want dear Mary Margaret waiting up, don't we?"

"Fuck you, in all ways that phrase can possibly mean," Emma spat and Regina's proud smirk was the last thing she saw before she turned and headed off in the direction where she parked her Bug.

She has had it, Emma decided. First thing tomorrow, she will visit the one person she has put off visiting ever since she stepped into this town of Storybrooke. And probably the only person who had enough power on her side to defeat that vile witch.

* * *

**A/N: Hey all! I know I know, slow updates. But all updates will never be more than a week, I guarantee that. I hope all of you have been having a great time this holiday season! It's New Year's Eve for me as I'm typing this and I wish all in the same time zone as me a Happy New Year's Eve, and a Happy New Year to everyone in advance! Thanks to everyone who read, reviewed, F&F. All mistakes are mine!**

**Have a blessed 2014 ahead!**


	6. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5 **

The bell to the musty dark shop lightly clinked as Emma stepped in, willing her eyes to refocus in the dim setting from the bright sunlight outside.

"Hello?"

She called out, cautiously taking small steps forward and looking around the pawnshop. Ever since the day of her arrest at the closed pawnshop a few weeks back, Emma had been preoccupied with other things and had for some reason, put off coming back to visit this mysterious Mr. Gold. Her nights, as usual, had been spent poring over the book again and again, piecing up information and matching them to the residents of this town.

Emma had already matched most of the residents to their fairytale counterparts based on daily observations. Like how the shrink, Archie Hopper, was Jiminy Cricket not only because of his umbrella and last name. Or like how nuns at the church were the fairies (it sometimes amazed Emma how the cursed worked because thinking back now, everyone probably knew those miniature winged women weren't getting any). She also found out that apparently her father's wife in this land, Kathryn Nolan, was Princess Abigail back in their land whom Prince Charming had been betrothed to. Interesting how secrets are always found out by means other than the source.

But what scared and intrigued her most was who Mr. Gold is. She had a high suspicion on his identity, but she needed to see the man face to face before she could to jump into any conclusion.

"How may I help you, dearie?"

The familiar words from the voice trailing behind her sent a harsh chill up her spine and Emma froze on the spot, the taunt drawing a hazy memory from what seemed like eons ago.

x

_The dungeon was dark and wet and Emma hated it. Her mother had said the party would not start until near dusk and she was bored to tears. Then, an idea struck her. Scampering down the halls and into the part of the castle she was strictly forbidden from, Emma peeked from behind the corner of the wall as the two guards on duty stood deathly still. _

_Reaching into her pocket for the large stone she had picked up on the way, Emma threw it with all her almost five year old might in the direction opposite hers. As expected, the stone caused a loud clank of reverberation around the dungeons as it hit something metal and the guards immediately abandoned their posts, rushing to the source of intrusion. _

_Grinning to herself, mischievous Emma took the chance to run in toward the jail cells, terrified of the unknown yet excited at the same time. The cage was dark and the flickering light of the fire lamp beside it did nothing to aid her sense of sight and Emma took small steps forward._

"_Hello?" She called out in a meek tone._

_There was silence, and then a scuffling of movement and slight scraping of chains against stone. The most hideous creature Emma had ever seen in her life pressed its scaly face against the jail bars, yellow teeth revealed behind the mad grin the creature was donning. As fear consumed her, Emma tried her best to keep her stand, knowing full well this image would be one burned in her memory for long._

"_How may I help you, dearie?" He cackled and Emma lightly jumped when he spoke._

_A scaly finger beckoned her forward and Emma felt compelled to obey, taking one step into the light. _

"_My my," the creature said in what seemed to be surprise. "A child! And the Princess, at that. Your highness."_

_He stooped into a low bow although Emma felt the insincerity rolling off him like waves. He stood then, grinning at her like she was a prize won and that was when she decided to speak._

"_Mother and Father said you have bad powers, because you're the Dark One. Is that true?"_

_The creature cackled. "I must say I haven't been painted a pretty picture, have I? Well, what your parents said is true, unfortunately. But,"_

_He surged forward pressing his face to the bars again and Emma gripped her dress tightly. There were almost two feet apart and already, she had a feeling her legs would break into a run should their distance get any closer. _

"_I have good powers too."_

"_What is it?"_

"_The future!" He said it in a singsong voice, which Emma felt oddly amused but did not show it. Intrigued by his powers, she continued probing._

"_Can I ask you a question then?"_

"_What do you wish to know, Your Highness?"_

"_What presents will I get for my birthday celebration later?"_

_Unexpectedly, the creature gave an honest to God laugh. "Oh dearie, you're a cute one. You see, I don't tell the _near _future. I tell the _future _future. For example, I can tell you that your existence is important. As so, says the prophecy and I must say dearie, it is coming soon."_

_She did not have time to ponder his words or wonder what he meant because at that moment, sounds signaling that the guards were returning caught Emma's attention and she immediately whirled around and left, not a word of goodbye or a backward glance given. _

x

It was unmistakable, that manner of speaking and the way it instilled such fear as when she was five, Mr. Gold was definitely _him_. Slowly turning around, Emma was internally surprised to see a very normal looking man with a cane, a little bit old in age and looking very harmless. His face betrayed nothing and Emma took a deep breath before starting.

"Mr. Gold, I presume? My name is Emma. Emma Swan."

The man nodded and made his way to her such that they were only two feet apart. "Do I know you?"

Emma studied Mr. Gold's face. It was impossible and yet, there was that tiny fraction of chance the Dark One might be affected by the curse and he might not remember her. Reaching into her pocket, she held up the postcard that had been sent to her.

"This was sent to me a few weeks ago and you're the only shop who sells postcards like these."

Mr. Gold shot a glance at the card in her hands and gave her a small smile. "My apologies, Ms. Swan. I do not understand what you are trying to imply."

Daring to take a step closer, Emma pierced her hazel gaze into brown ones. "You remember, don't you? Even if you don't, I can remind you who you are."

"And who exactly am I?" The man gave an amused smirk.

"It seems that old age is probably taking its toll on you early, isn't it? Our meeting from all those years ago probably meant nothing to you, but for a little girl faced with such a hideous creature, it definitely was memorable."

Emma's courage grew bolder as she circled the smaller man.

"Isn't that right, Rumplestiltskin?"

[-]

Henry Mills bid goodbye to his therapist as he left Archie Hopper's apartment after his fortnightly appointment. Initially, he had thought that maybe Dr. Hopper would believe him about the curse. After all, he was supposed to help. But that proved to be the contrary when he found out just exactly how the doctor bid his mother's orders and now Henry only saw him as a spy.

He was glad that Emma is here, in Storybrooke. She is the Saviour meant to break the curse and bring back everyone's happy endings, Henry only wished he could help. But Emma was always so busy and opted doing things herself. Henry knew he was "just a kid" and that his actions were limited, but he would jump at any opportunity to get more information for Operation Cobra.

Reaching the foot of the stairs and onto the street, Henry sighed as he saw his mother already pulled up by the sidewalk, patiently waiting for him as he climbed into the black Mercedes.

"Henry, you wouldn't mind if we stopped by the abandoned mine shaft, do you? I have something to settle there. It'd be quick, I promise."

"Whatever," Henry mumbled and he faced the passenger window.

Regina pursed her lips but said nothing. _It's just a phase, _she told herself. Soon, her son will be returned back to her and they could live their happy ever after together. She had initially planned for a quiet Saturday spent at the mansion, just the two of them. But Sidney had informed her about the worsening conditions of the sinkhole and she was needed for inspection.

Reaching the abandoned mine shaft, Regina saw that there were already construction workers and some reporters gathered there.

"Stay in the car, okay? It might be dangerous out here," Regina warned Henry before getting out of the car.

Turning to look out of the window and wishing he could just be in his room, Henry spotted something shiny reflected off from the ground a distance away from the car and close to the boarded up section of the mine. Curiosity urged him and he ignored his mother's warnings, exiting the car and creeping up to the object which resembled what seems to be like a glass shard.

Then it struck him as sudden as lightning. There was a reason why the mines were abandoned in the first place! His mother was probably hiding something in there. Checking his surroundings, Henry made sure no one was around to spot him before he took out his pocket torchlight and slid under the yellow tape into the dark mine.

"There is no further discussion," Regina snapped, losing her patience at the insistent reporter. "Demolish the mines and fill the sinkhole. What is so difficult to understand?"

"Madame Mayor, we do not know what are in these mines! There could be something of value or-"

"What, Sidney, the royal crown? Do not waste my time on such mundane things. See to it that my orders are heeded."

With that, Regina spun on her heel and headed towards her car. Squinting at the black vehicle, something seemed amiss and there it was as plain as day: the place where her son's silhouette should be is missing. Worry bubbling within her, Regina frantically looked around, searching for any trace of the young boy.

That was when it happened.

[-]

The man stared at her for a while before calming making his way behind the counter and resting his hands atop of it. For a moment, Emma thought she had lost. That was the last card she could pull and by the absence of reaction Mr. Gold manifested, it almost seemed that all her hopes were dashed. Almost.

"To think that you would grow into such a beauty, _Your Highness,_" Mr. Gold inclined his head in a pseudo bow.

"You remember?"

"But of course," Mr. Gold gave a hooded smile. "I was the one who created the curse, after all."

Emma's eyes widened as she processed this new information. All along, she had thought that the five years of absence by the Evil Queen was spent in creating the curse. It seems like she had been wrong. But if this man was the one who created the curse, which means…

"You know how to break the curse, don't you?"

"Do I?" The man tilted his head in question and in that moment, Emma swore he looked exactly like the Rumplestiltskin she had seen in Fairytale Land. "Or do I not?"

Slamming her fist on the countertop, Emma lost her cool, "No games, Rumplestiltskin."

Mr. Gold only smiled. "Breaking the curse is not an easy task, Ms. Swan. Ask yourself if you're willing to make sacrifices."

"What sorts of sacrifices?"

"Feelings."

Emma frowned. "Elaborate."

"For the curse to be broken, you must strike the heart at its finest. Otherwise known as, its weakest. And what could _possibly _be the best way to weaken someone? Love."

"Hold on a second, you want the curse broken, don't you?" Emma asked askance.

Mr. Gold blinked. "You want to know the solution, I am telling you."

"But you never do things without getting at least something in return," Emma replied, remembering what she had read in Henry's storybook.

"My reputation precedes me I see," Mr. Gold grinned. "Now that you mention it, I do need something."

"What, like an object?"

"Yes, and a very important one at that," Mr. Gold gave a casual shrug. "In fact, I have already made some preparations to get it myself but since you're offering, I suppose I can save myself the trouble. Besides, you'll need to go there soon anyway."

Although his words confused her (when can the man stop talking in riddles, seriously), Emma hastily agreed. It was like gambling, Emma mused. Making deals with the shadiest man in Fairytale Land. You put to risk every future thing for a current something. But again, what could she possibly have that the man would want? Close to nothing. Besides, this man was the only chance she's got in this town anyway.

"You've got everything planned out haven't you," Emma realized after listening to the outline of what he had up his sleeve.

"And you, dearie, should be honoured you're part of it," Mr. Gold replied as he smiled the smile that never fails to make her uncomfortable. Talk about childhood phobia, she thought as she turned and prepared to leave the pawnshop.

That was when it happened.

[-]

The tremor was large and a huge crash caught everyone's attention as the cordoned off entrance of the mine shaft caved in, rocks conveniently falling atop each other and obscuring anyone else who tries to enter. Call it a mother's intuition, but Regina just knew that her son was inside.

"Henry!"

Her hoarse cry sounded as she ran toward the entrance, small fists thumping against the heavy stone. Quickly, a few hands from the surrounding workers pulled her away and into safety.

"It's not safe, Ma'am."

"My son," Regina cried. "My son is in there! Halt all operations! My son is inside!"

"What's going on?"

The accented male voice drifted from her side and for once in her life, Regina was glad to see the law enforcement as she hurried over to Graham and Emma.

"Sheriff, Henry is inside! Get people in!" Regina desperately cried out and Graham nodded, already hurrying to the caved in entrance with some of the workers.

"What?" Emma asked, flabbergasted as she took in the disoriented state of the brunette. "How did he get in? The area was cordoned off!"

"I don't know," Regina snapped. "I asked him to stay in the car!"

"Yeah, because you couldn't have just brought him with you."

"Great, lecture me until my son runs out of oxygen," Regina huffed frustrated, and already on the verge of a breakdown.

Emma said nothing, quickly shrugging off her red jacket and getting to work. This was also _her _son they were talking about and she was definitely not going to sit around and do nothing. Just then, Graham came running back to them.

"Madame Mayor, the rocks won't budge. The entrance is completely sealed."

"Oh my god…" Regina closed her eyes and tried to will the tears away, not willing to show any signs of weakness. Emma watched as this new side of the brunette surfaced. Even she cannot deny that Regina, no matter how evil and bitchy she is, really does love Henry.

"Hey," the blonde said in the gentlest voice she could manage in this moment of panic. "Calm down, we'll find a way."

Looking around the crowd of people who had gathered from the nearby area, Emma spotted Archie along with his dog and an idea sprang into her head.

"Regina," her serious tone got the brunette off guard and for once, the Mayor was listening. "Do you have anything of Henry's with you right now?"

"I think his scarf is in the car."

"Okay, good. I need you to get it now and bring it here."

Not used to taking orders, Regina frowned. "And why should I listen to you?"

Emma threw up her hands in frustration. "For Christ's sakes, Regina! Now is not the _time _to argue! If you want to save Henry we _all_ must cooperate."

Regina shot a wary glance at her before finally acquiescing, albeit reluctantly. As they brought the scarf to Pongo, both women watched with anticipation as the Dalmatian gave it a light sniff before planting his nose to the ground to find a trail and dashing off in one direction, Emma and Regina following suit.

"Here!" Emma yelled as Pongo led them to a loose patch of ground and started barking. "He's here!"

With the help of Graham and some workers, they lifted off the loose patch to reveal a trapdoor on the ground. Gathering the truck with the lever mechanism, that was then pulled loose to disclose a long, dark hole that stretched what seemed for meters deep.

"So?" Regina folded her arms as she peered in. "What's the plan, Deputy?"

"Someone needs to go down there and pull him up."

Almost immediately as she said, Regina stepped forward. "I'll do it."

"Let me," Emma managed but was cut off.

"He is my son."

The blonde forced against annoyed sigh. "He is my son too. You've been sitting behind a desk for all these years now; I can handle the rough stuff. Let me do it."

There was a moment where Emma saw something flash through the brunette's eyes, something she cannot quite decipher as the Mayor took one more step forward until they were inches apart. Emma felt her breath grow shallow Regina bore her dark eyes into her own hazel ones, not caring if anyone else was staring.

"Just bring him to me," She said softly and Emma nodded, getting to work.

It didn't take long before her white tank top was dirtied with Earth and she was brought back up to the ground, a weak Henry clutching tightly on her shoulders as Regina rushed toward them.

"Henry!" Regina cried, arms wide open as Emma set the kid to the ground, smoothing his hair. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah," Henry forced out a weak smile, no doubt the trip in the mines drowning most of his energy.

The blonde stood back and watched as mother hugged her son tightly, a small smile forming on her lips as she watched this rare side of Regina blatantly display itself. As if noting her presence, Regina released herself from the embrace and stalked towards the blonde.

"Ready to thank me, Madame Mayor?" Emma cannot help the smirk on her face.

Regina raised an amused eyebrow. "You did excellent, Deputy."

With that, she turned back toward her car, gently nudging Henry along. Well, that was as close to a 'thank you' as she can get, Emma thought as she watched the two leave before hurrying back to the trapdoor.

"Wait!" She stopped the workers from closing the trapdoor back up. "I think I dropped my watch in there. Could you help lower me again? I would really appreciate it."

The worker gruffly agreed. "Alright, lady. But you gotta hurry; we got work to do here."

Giving the signal that she was ready, Emma was lowered down again and she quickly ran toward the spot where she had found Henry slumped in before going further and deeper into the mines. It had been dark down here but now with the help of her flashlight, everything was clear and she was sure her sight had not deceived her.

There, sitting in front of her with shards of glass gathered around its cracked surface, was undoubtedly Snow White's glass coffin which was easily recognized by its intricate vine designs from the book, now however in ruins. Reaching in, Emma felt around the inside of the coffin as instructed and under the soft padding, now dusty and hard with dirt and age. Sure enough, there was the small shape of a bottle and she yanked it up, slipping the glass bottle in her jean pocket before heading back to the rope.

"Got your stuff?" The worker asked as she reached the surfaced.

Emma shook her head, sighing.

"No. It's a pity, though. I loved that watch."

"Yeah," he replied, not really caring. "Better get moving. We're bringing this place down soon."

She turned to leave and instinctively brought a hand to her pocket, making sure the bottle was there as shouts of orders to demolish the mines were heard. Emma smiled to herself, at least she could agree with the Mayor on one thing: better to get others to destroy the evidence than to do it yourself.

[-]

The next few weeks fell back into routine and frankly, Emma was starting to enjoy life as it is in Storybrooke. Weekends were spent camping on the couch, relenting to watching romantic comedies with Mary Margaret. Weekdays were filled with work and bear claws before Friday came and she would join Ruby and Mary Margaret for their weekly girls night out. It was strange at first, to sit at the same tall table as your mother and listen to her giggle about her secret rendezvous with David Nolan or hearing Ruby (supposedly her godmother) openly flirting with both the men and women in the bar with her double entendre comments. But after a period of time, Emma found herself beginning to enjoy it and started seeing them as friends as well.

The term was rare for the most part of her life and she was glad to call these two her best friends. No, not her mother and her godmother, but Mary Margaret and Ruby. There was a difference, Emma realized. With no memories of who they were before, it seems that their personality and character had changed along with their new memories as well. And to be honest, Emma loved this version of Snow: carefree and smiling, nothing like the uptight and strict one she grew up with back in the Enchanted Forest.

This Friday night, the trio are seen planted at their usual table in the bar, alcohol in hand as they chatted and laughed, a little bit too loudly, the only evidence that they were embarking on the road to intoxication.

"Spill it, M&M," Ruby ordered as she downed another shot of tequila. "You fucked the married man, didn't you!"

"What? No!" Mary Margaret exclaimed, horrified and Emma sputtered on her drink at the look of her roommate's face. "I swear, we didn't do anything!"

"Kiss?" Emma taunted.

Mary Margaret blushed. "Well… maybe a little…"

"Aha!" Ruby slammed her fist on the table and started making risqué movements with her tongue, obviously the drunkest of the three. "You guys _made out_, which is gonna lead to third base and then BAM! Fire in the hole!"

This time Emma could not control her laughter as she choked on her drink when she saw the look on Mary Margaret's face, and then laughed again at the irony when she realized the pixie haired brunette's red face reminded her of an apple. She was that drunk.

Mary Margaret turned to glare at her.

"What about you, Emma? You and the Mayor, hmm?"

Reminding herself to kill her roommate in her sleep later, Emma just shrugged and chugged the rest of her beer, Ruby immediately taking this chance to pounce on her.

"Yeah, Emma! Is the Mayor as feisty in bed as she is in person?"

_Wouldn't you like to know, _Emma smirked to herself as Ruby and Mary Margaret burst into giggles before she shook her head. "Regina and I aren't, you know, having sex anymore."

In fact, it was as if the mine incident had never happened. Emma had thought that she would be given some sort of recognition if not being Henry's birth mother or the Deputy but at least as acknowledging the fact that they worked somewhat together to rescue Henry. But the very next day after that, Regina had just came into the sheriff's department and ordered her to oversee some overdue paperwork and that was it. The times when they bumped into each other at Granny's were also just concluded with a simple civil nod toward the other and that was it. No sneers, no insults, no mocks from the brunette. Of course, no mention of her spending time with Henry either, not like she was not secretly meeting the kid at their usual hideout. In truth, Emma had received a strange vibe from the brunette that Regina was somehow desperate to draw that thick line between them, for whatever reason the other woman was having.

Her reply killed their laughter instantly and Ruby moved to put an arm around the blonde, Mary Margaret's mouth opened in shock.

"Oh my god, Emma," Mary Margaret spoke. "Are you guys okay? Was there a fight?"

"It's perfectly alright, honey," Ruby added, rubbing her hand up and down along Emma's back. "I know how such sex driven relationships work. You just got to give her time, you know. Appreciate the girl now and then."

Emma stared in bewilderment at her two friends, "What? No! Regina and I aren't…"

That was when it hit her and Emma trailed off as the impact of the epiphany served to steal her words away with a loud exhale. The answer had been there along! Mr. Gold's hints, her crazy relationship with the Mayor herself and now, the assumption from her two closest friends. All those nights of finding a way to break the curse and trying to decipher a riddle solution between the old font and pictures from endless scrutiny of the book, she had actually been looking at the wrong place this whole time.

"… exactly arguing," she continued off her broken sentence, with a newfound motive place. "It's just… she ignores me because she thinks I'm not being serious."

Ruby nodded understandingly. "She thinks you guys are in a relationship but you're not acting like it."

"Exactly," Emma sighed. "What should I do?"

"Well you've got the right person," Ruby announced as she regarded both of them. "I know just exactly how you can get yourself out of this shit."

"Really, how?" Mary Margaret asked, entranced.

"Simple!" Ruby turned back toward Emma. "You got to let Regina know you appreciate her not just for sex, but just by her being _her_. You gotta woo the girl, flowers and all. The whole classic package! Little notes here and there, chocolates, if you're the romantic one. Trust me, she will notice, and she will respond."

Ruby leaned down and gave her a smirk as Emma pondered. "You'll help me?"

"Of course!" Ruby broke into a huge grin. "What are friends for?"

And as Emma smiled back and the three clinked glasses, she knew just how to start the ball rolling.

[-]

Regina sat in her study and sipped from her usual glass of apple cider. Things had been going surprisingly well for her lately: work at the office was breezy, Henry and her engaging in conversation at dinner (granted it was more than two sentences from him but at least that was an improvement), and no trouble from a certain blonde.

It was as if the happy ending she wanted was finally beginning to show itself after years of being in the shadows and Regina would allow herself to feel happy, if not for the fact that something had been bugging her the past few weeks and even more so after the mine incident. Yes, she had been avoiding the blonde not because she was weak (something she proved to be wrong by marching into the sheriff's department every week to claim overdue paperwork) but because of the turmoil of emotions Emma brought about in her.

There was definitely no attraction, Regina repeatedly assured herself. In fact, she still disliked the woman to a great extent. But there was no denying that she felt something stirring in her when Emma rescued Henry from the mines.

"_You've been sitting behind a desk for all these years now; I can handle the rough stuff. Let me do it."_

The words echoed in her head in the aftermath of the incident longer than Regina would have liked. Maybe Emma did it just for herself because Henry was her blood child after all, but for the first time in a long time; someone actually did something not because she ordered them to but because they _wanted _to. And after considering things in her point of view, Regina must add. For the first time in a long time, someone actually… cared.

_No, _Regina shook her head. Love is weakness, it had been a harsh lesson learnt and she will never allow herself to fall back into the road of open vulnerability again. It was too humiliating. Besides, it was obvious to the whole goddamned town how much they hated each other. Just then, there was a knock on the door rousing Regina from her thoughts.

Lightly grumbling, she made her way to the front door only to be faced by the subject of her thoughts, Emma's face looking flushed. Then came the words that made Regina freeze on the spot and a dread forming in her gut as Emma spoke, firm and determined.

"We need to talk."

* * *

**A/N: For those who read my other fanfic 'The Story So Far', you'd know that I like to paint Mr. Gold a mysterious picture, haha! It's just so fun for him to be the catalyst for our two favourite women. As usual, all mistakes are mine and I hope you enjoyed this chapter!**


	7. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6 **

Emma only dared to fix her stare when Regina turned her back, preparing a glass of her famous chilled apple cider for her. It was a haste decision - the blonde knew, to come running to the Mayor's house after reaching that epiphany back at the bar. But Ruby and Mary Margaret had been insistent and she knew she had to play along. Besides, it helped to boost her confidence and if she was ever going to do this right, that was what she needed the most.

"So, what do you want to talk about, Ms. Swan?"

Much to her surprise, Regina's tone was free of malice when she stalked over and handed Emma the glass, placing herself beside the blonde on the couch in the living room. Emma felt her throat turn dry as she remembered the events that happened on that very couch just weeks ago. For some reason, that felt so far away right now.

"I um…"

_Fuck, Swan. Get it together. _

"This… whatever it is between us, needs to end."

Regina raised an amused eyebrow. "Oh? And _what_, exactly, is between us?"

Emma took a deep breath and steadied herself, "Everything, Regina. You know what, let's start from the beginning. I know you hate me because you think I'm trying to take Henry away from you, right?"

When Regina said nothing else and only took a sip from her drink, Emma took that as a prompt to continue.

"Well, guess what? I'm not. In fact, on the contrary, I believe we can work something out – like me getting him on Mondays or something. But it'll be totally up to you, I respect your decision. I just… I just want us to get along."

Regina blinked at the woman in front of her and tried hard to control the genuine surprise she felt from manifesting on her face. This Emma, the one sitting not three feet away from her, was definitely not the Emma Swan that came clashing against her in the first few days they had met. Regina's eyes met Emma's wide ones and she felt something – a sudden jerk in her heart, if you could call it that. As if something that once had been chained, was now finally free but still confined.

"Why?" Regina asked skeptically.

"Look," Emma sighed, running a hand through her blonde curls. "I know this is going to be hard to believe and hell, I bet you'd hate me even more when I tell you this. But, I just have to say it out. If I keep it in, it'll just consume me from the inside out. I know we started off on a bad note: fights - physical and sexual alike, the constant threats you made to me, my reciprocal ones, and all these negative energy surrounding the both of us. Frankly, I'm tired of all this bullshit.

"I don't want to come to work one day to see that you have planted an enormous amount of paperwork on my desk just because someone said they saw me on the street with Henry. I don't want to end up in a near argument with you every time you and Henry come to the diner and the kid runs up to me. I don't want fights that end in rough sex and then us avoiding each other for days – even weeks, after. I want none of these."

Emma paused to take a breath and Regina folded her arms. "Then what do you want, Ms. Swan?"

"I want all of the above to stop."

Regina scoffed. "So you think I'm just going to step aside and let you take Henry away from me, is that it?"

"No," Emma threw her hands up, exasperated. "You still don't understand. I don't want, nor intend, to take Henry away from you! Yes, he is my birth son and there definitely will be times where we will hang out together, but obviously not without discussion with you. Nevertheless he's staying right here, in your life. And maybe in time, if you'd let me, I would too."

"What?"

Regina's voice came out shocked and unexpectedly soft that Emma brought herself to meet dark eyes which clouded with uncertainty. No doubt, she had rendered the Evil Queen to a one word sentence and Regina had her mouth slightly agape, as if trying to assure if the meaning she had comprehended from Emma's sentence was what the blonde had actually meant.

"You were right, you know, about me. I do move from place to place because I don't see a point in getting attached to places or people. But this time, it's different. You see, there is only one reason why I stayed here in Storybrooke, you. I wanted to get to know you."

"But… you hate me," Regina shook her head, stunned.

"I did," Emma admitted.

"But as the weeks passed, I knew you were doing what you had to do as a mother: to protect your child. All those times we came charging at each other head-on, it was just a defence mechanism on your part. That day at the mines, I finally saw you – the true you. How you got so worried over Henry, how the anger that overwrote the fear in your eyes was just your way of protecting yourself from the people around you that saw you as a demanding leader most of the time, and how you possibly berated yourself for letting Henry get himself in danger.

"I bet it's no secret to you that I was brought up in the foster system and mark my words when I say this: you're the kind of mother every kid in the system can ever dream of. Because in the end behind all those masks you put up to people, you still… well, you chose your child. And I think… I think that quality in a person already precedes the rest of their other qualities. And that is the woman I see, the one I want to know."

For once, Regina could not find anything to say. It had already been a shocking reveal that Emma wanted them to get along, but this… this was _impossible_. It felt like for the first time in a long time, someone had actually taken the time to analyze her and to try and see her for who she was beneath all that skin. Regina could not bring herself to feel or hope anything as her eyes never left the blonde's, suddenly seeing her in a whole new light. She felt the situation so crazy to the point that Regina wondered if she had a drop too many previously and had imagined this whole scene up. But a cough from Emma pulled her from her train of thought and she knew this was as real as the fact that she had once been the Evil Queen.

Emma watched the emotions play out on Regina's face, shock unmasking the woman beneath. In a parallel world, Emma had envisioned herself as an awkward teenager confessing her feelings to a crush and this palm-sweating, nail-biting situation was no different. She shifted on her bum, the smooth velvet couch suddenly feeling uncomfortable. The nerves increased at Regina's prolonged silence and Emma lightly coughed, hoping to get attention.

Regina cursed herself internally for having been caught off guard but schooled her features, transforming into the cool and composed Mayor she had always been.

"I'm not looking for romance, Ms. Swan."

All these were only an act on her part, Emma knew as she clenched her fists and gritted her teeth. She was definitely no stranger to rejection, that having walked with her in the most part of her life. But for some reason, _this _hurt. The words came out of Regina's mouth and plunged straight through her heart, making Emma feel disgustingly vulnerable. Still, Emma ignored the ache and continued.

"I know," Emma's voice cracked a little and Regina pretended not to notice. "But I want to try, if you'd give me the chance and if you'd give yourself a chance at happiness too."

Giving a little scoff, Regina set her empty glass on the coffee table.

"You're not thinking straight, Ms. Swan. I fear my drinks might have been a little too strong than expected."

The brunette prepared to get up but was stopped by a firm hand on her arm and that alone caused her whole being to tense.

"I'm perfectly sober," Emma murmured. "It's okay. I know… I know it's a lot to take in right now and I know it's almost impossible, seeing how our history was born from animosity. But I'm determined."

Dark brown eyes raked between hazel ones, and Regina felt herself softening. The feeling coursing through her veins was like a stroke of serendipity – she thought she would be content with Henry, but her heart cannot deny the kind of intimacy she craved from a lover.

_There will be an emptiness inside you – a void you will never be able to fill. _

Maleficent's voice reverberated around her head and Regina shut her eyes tightly. It was a dull truth and yet she had been willing to try with Henry, to get as close to loving him with such a curse. When she finally dared to meet Emma's eyes again, Regina found that the pure desperation and sincerity swimming within those hazel orbs mirrored hers and for once, there was that glimmer of hope.

"I… I don't know," Regina admitted and that was all she could stutter out, because the turmoil raging internally was overwhelming.

"I understand," Emma nodded, releasing her hold on Regina's arm and stood up as well. "I could give you some time to think about this and I will respect your decision. But… just remember that I have feelings as well."

It was an obvious hint from Emma not to keep her waiting, and the larger part of Regina smirked, thinking what a fool Ms. Swan was to actually take a gamble with her feelings on her. But the other side – this newfound side, felt herself wanting and craving for someone to love and care for her again. Regina wanted happiness so much she'd take on anything, butshe needed confirmation.

"Why?"

It was a simple question that shadowed actual meaning and Emma knew her answer would serve as the ultimate push to let Regina make her decision. If she was going to do this, she was going to do this right.

"Because I believe you're worth it."

And that did it. Despite the larger part of her screaming no and berating her for being weak, Regina gave the barest hint of a smile and nodded. This could very well be the road to her damnation but she was a Queen once, Regina decided. She could probably turn the situation around should she sense anything amiss.

After sending Emma out, Regina closed her front door and leaned against it, daring herself to exhale a heavy breath. The night's events had turned out unexpected and the brunette knew she needed to clear her head.

On one hand, she knew a large part of her still disliked Emma Swan. At first, it was because of the threat she felt when she first found out that Emma was the birth mother of Henry. The brunette knew fairly well that Emma had no legal power to take Henry away but who could blame her, Regina mused. When she first adopted Henry, the mother had specified for it to be a closed adoption – no details, no means of contact, nothing. It came as an instinct to Regina to grasp tightly onto anyone she loved, to not let them easily slip between her fingers again.

On the other however, Regina could not deny the funny feeling that surfaced since the incident at the mines. Being her usual self, she had brushed it aside, opting to drown herself in paperwork than to deal with matters of the heart. But Emma appearing at her doorstep tonight just proved that she could not ignore it anymore. It was suspicious though, that the blonde would suddenly have a change of feelings toward her and would want to pursue her. But Regina wanted this; she wanted to feel cared for, and Emma had been the one to reawaken that feeling back when she offered to get Henry back for her.

She would spend the weekend to mull over this, Regina decided as she made her way into the study. But for now, this was an excuse enough to get inebriated.

[-]

"Kid, I need to tell you something."

"Yeah?"

"About Operation Cobra… we've been going in the wrong direction this whole time."

Henry frowned. "What do you mean?"

It was the early afternoon on Sunday and they were seated at their usual booth at Granny's, talking over hot cocoa and donuts. It came as a pleasant surprise when Regina allowed Henry to leave the house when she caught him trying to sneak out, even though he had told her that he was meeting Emma when she questioned him.

Emma had only laughed it off when the boy recounted the earlier scene, although feeling slightly jumpy because she had not called to meet Henry today for nothing. Emma loved spending time with Henry, really. But after some consideration, she had decided to let Henry know about her plan (the fabricated one) despite her worry that he might reject it.

"I am the Saviour, and I am supposed defeat the Evil Queen and break the curse to bring back everyone's happy endings right?" Emma traced out as she fixed her gaze on her son, studying his every reaction.

Henry nodded slowly, curious as to what his birth mother was getting at.

"I just figured something out last night," Emma said. "To bring back everyone's happy endings, that includes your mother's. Since I'm the Saviour, that includes saving the Evil Queen from her darkness as well. Whatever bad things your mother had done in her past doesn't define who she is now, but rather who she can become from here. And I believe that everyone deserves a second chance."

Henry just continued staring blankly at her and Emma stared back nervously, afraid the kid would see through her or accuse her of being on the Evil Queen's side. From Henry's point of view, Emma could see just how easy it is to jump into such conclusions seeing that they were just discussing how to go about finding a loophole in the curse to bring down the Evil Queen. To her surprise, Henry suddenly snapped his fingers and gave a large grin.

"That's right! Why haven't I thought of that before?" He squealed and leaned forward so much he almost spilled his beverage. "The Saviour saves everyone _and _the Evil Queen because she is good! Saviours don't kill people, they save them! And also because you're the product of true love, it all makes sense! Gosh Emma, you're a genius!"

She knew she should be feeling relieved, but Emma cannot help that sick feeling in her gut knowing that she was lying straight to her son's face. But certain things need to be done in sacrifice to accomplish certain others.

Emma smiled and reached a hand forward to lightly ruffle the kid's hair, "Not a genius without you."

"But how are you going to do it, save the Evil Queen?"

"Love, Henry. I only have to love."

The word sounded foreign on her lips and although she flashed a smile, it harboured no real emotion behind it. Emma had been in this world long enough to know it didn't just lack love, it was cruel as well. But if being cruel was what it takes to get back the people she loved, then Emma would gladly play the part.

"You love my mom?" Henry asked, somewhat surprised.

"I like her, currently," Emma tried. "She still has that soft side of her you know, and that is you."

That was perhaps the truest statement she had said in the span of two days and Emma felt comically proud. But that lasted only a few seconds as she watched Henry droop his head and sigh.

"What's wrong?"

The brown haired boy shrugged. "Mom… she doesn't love me. She can't. When the Evil Queen cast the curse, it put a void inside her heart."

"But she loves you, Henry. I can see it, and void or not, she's trying. That's why we have to give her the chance to change. Only then can we break the curse and save her from the damned."

"But how do you know we can succeed? What if we fail and she becomes more evil?"

"Then you only have to trust yourself to believe," Emma smiled, surprising even herself to find comfort in that statement.

"Ms. Swan."

An all too familiar voice husked behind her and Emma felt her whole body tense in instinct, for reasons more than one. Then slowly turning around, she gave her most casual laugh.

"Hey, Regina."

The brunette only nodded at her before fishing out a five dollar bill from her purse and handed it to Henry.

"Henry, go get yourself some ice cream. I would like to have a chat with Ms. Swan."

The air around them was thick with unanswered questions and for a second, Emma thought that Henry was going to refuse. But then he only grinned up at his adopted mother (which served as a surprise to both women) and scampered away, giving his two mothers privacy.

Emma swallowed as she watched Regina gracefully slide herself in the booth, seating opposite her with arms folded across her chest in a body language of defence. She was silent and the blonde waited, half in anticipation and the other in dread, until Emma could not take it anymore.

"Look, it's okay if you don't want to do this. Just know that my feelings for you will nev-"

"I agree."

The curt answer startled Emma and she stared back into brown orbs, searching for confirmation.

"What?"

Regina sighed. After that eventful Friday night, she had spent almost all of her waking hours thinking about it, her conscious mind and strong feelings playing a constant game of tug-of-war. But when she had caught Henry sneaking out to meet a certain blonde, Regina knew she had to make an effort if not for herself then for the sake of her son.

"We can start by being… amicable," Regina replied. "I don't want… I don't like…"

"You want to take things slow," Emma finished for her and Regina was somehow relieved that she wasn't forced to say the words out.

"Yes," the brunette agreed.

Emma tried her best to limit the displeasure showing on her face. She loathed commitment and time was a huge aspect of it. The blonde knew she cannot afford to take things too slow as she recalled Mr. Gold's words to her on the day she returned with the tiny flask from the mines.

"_You wouldn't want to take too long, dearie."_

_Emma frowned suspiciously. "Why? Time has stopped here."_

_The man gave a chuckle and shook his head as if he were addressing a child. "Oh but didn't you notice? Time has started moving again ever since you came. And that is why you should get your job done as soon as possible."_

"_But I still don't understand. What happens if I don't?"_

"_Unfathomable things, just like how all things with Fate are."_

_Emma said nothing, only nodded. For now, she did not care about the implications. She only knew she needed to get one thing on mind: do her part in the prophecy and fulfil the duty as Saviour. _

"_What's in that bottle anyway?" Emma gestured toward the flask still in Mr. Gold's hands._

_Almost instinctively, the man curled his spindly fingers around it and slipped it into his coat pocket. _

"_You don't need to worry about that, Deputy. It will worry about itself once the curse breaks…"_

_Then he looked straight at her._

"_If you succeed, of course."_

_The mere insinuation of the possibility of her failing was incentive enough to fire up the determination in Emma and the blonde narrowed her eyes._

"_I will definitely succeed," she growled. "Just watch me."_

Coming back to the present, Emma looked at the woman opposite her who returned an unsure gaze and smiled. Words are such a powerful thing, Emma thought. A mere confession from her was all it took to reduce the hard edged, commanding Mayor into uncertainty and nervousness.

"Like I said, I will respect your decision. If you want to take things slow, I am all for it, as long as I get to be near you."

The small smile Emma shot her sent butterflies fluttering in her stomach and Regina found herself returning it as her thumb running through the crescent indents made on her hand from her earlier nerves, now enjoying the feeling of starting afresh.

As Henry bounded back up to them with two more sundaes ("Ruby's treat!" he had exclaimed), as she watched Emma immediately scooped a whirl of ice cream onto her tongue and who gave a sheepish smile upon realizing she was caught being stared at, and as her son slid in beside her and flashed a grin at her asking if chocolate was okay, Regina thought that maybe, just _maybe_, this might be the happy beginning of a new ending for her.

[-]

"How are you and Regina, Emma?"

The question made Emma's spoon of cereal freeze on its way to her mouth and the blonde almost forgot that Mary Margaret and Ruby had been the ones who unconsciously given her the idea at first. It had been a week ever since Regina agreed to them "going slow" and being "amicable" and it had been disappointing, really.

With the time limit in mind, Emma had tried clichéd ways in getting more physical contact with the brunette in hopes of 'speeding up the process' (if you could call it that): gently brushing their hands when they walked together (but that got thwarted when Henry always chose to insert himself between the two), deliberately standing closer to the brunette when they were washing the dishes together on a day when Regina invited her over for dinner (which happens almost every day now), and even asking for a goodbye hug (which was immediately turned down, much to Emma's embarrassment and annoyance).

It was evident from all the small things Emma had spent with Regina in the past week that the older woman definitely had some issues in regards to touching or relationships in general and Emma found herself wondering on occasion who the girl before the Evil Queen was. But she forced herself to stop thinking; Regina Mills destroyed thousands of lives after all, why should she care how _her _life was destroyed?

"Not that good," Emma spoke when she remembered to answer. "We've been going slow for a week now and it's infuriating."

Mary Margaret shot her a pitiful look as the pixie haired brunette went behind the kitchen island, filling a mug with orange juice.

"You just have to give her time. Regina seems like the kind who wants a serious relationship and would make sure the other party is serious too before fully committing."

Mary Margaret was right, Emma decided. Unfortunately, that was what she dreaded the most as well.

"I know. I just really miss her, you know," Emma mock sighed, a prompt she knew would get the other woman to take the initiative to elaborate on ways to help her.

In truth, Mary Margaret had been her one and only confidante in regards to this matter and she was so patient and understanding that Emma found herself wanting to confess the truth more than once, only to stop in the nick of time. Emma knew that this whole plot was a dangerous road that could spiral her down to darkness at any time, and that the Emma she was would never resort to such emotional manipulation on a person. But that worry was soon tossed away during late nights on her bed as Emma assured herself that she was doing this for the greater good: to get everyone's happy endings back. And it was this strong case of cognitive dissonance that spurred Emma on with her plan.

"Well," Mary Margaret replied as she leaned against the counter and sipped from her cup. "You can subtly try to go into the next step."

"The next step?"

"Yes, to woo her!"

Emma frowned. "I don't understand."

"You said that she wants to be amicable right? Do you think that you and her are amicable now?"

Emma thought about the dinners she had been having at Regina's house and the days where Henry succeeded in convincing his adopted mother to stop by Granny's where they would 'coincidentally' run into her. Their conversations would be filled with snide remarks thrown to and from (but this time without malice) and most of the time even though she tried her best to hide it, Emma would spy that slight upward curve of Regina's lips directed at her whenever she said something funny.

"We are," Emma affirmed and Mary Margaret broke into a smile.

"Then you should start showing her just how serious you are!"

"But how?"

"All those days Regina had been the one inviting you to dinner, right? Maybe you should do the same this time! It's Saturday today, you could fix a dinner date with her or something!"

Mary Margaret's enthusiasm was contagious and Emma nodded, taking in her roommate's words as she pushed the soggy cereal around in the bowl. Mary Margaret had a point; if she wanted to move things faster, she had to contribute to this relationship as well. As an idea formed in Emma's head and she gave Mary Margaret a thank you hug, the blonde knew just what to do and exactly what preparations were needed.

* * *

**A/N: Hey people! Life has started for everyone in 2014 this week and since it's my last term for this year, I am piled with five projects on my hands. Still, I will try to update as said before: within a week. But I apologize if I exceed. The story is finally getting on to the juicy parts and I do hope you will understand Emma's state of conflict in the later chapters. All mistakes are mine and I hope you enjoyed this chapter. **


	8. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7 **

"Ms. Swan, is this really necessary?" Regina huffed as she felt herself being led into her Mercedes, Emma's hand gently pushing her head down before buckling the seatbelt.

"It's a surprise," the distant voice came as the blonde slammed the door and made her way over to the driver's seat. "Of course it is necessary. And no peeking!"

Still blindfolded, Regina pursed her lips and folded her arms as she felt the car's engine revved up. Surprises had never been to her liking as in retrospect, they always came as nasty ones. She had not even wanted to agree to Emma's ridiculous proposal in the first place – preferring to spend a quiet Saturday evening with her books and some cider. But almost as a requisite that came with the blonde, curiosity got the better of her. However, that only lasted a millisecond before Emma blindfolded her.

"Don't make me regret this, Ms. Swan."

"Trust me, Regina. You'll love it."

The conversation stopped there as Regina got caught up in her thoughts. As much as she loathed surprises, it did come as one for her to find out that she thoroughly enjoyed the blonde's company whenever she extended an invitation to Emma to have dinner. Regina had been reluctant at first of course, obliging only when Henry managed to convince her that if she wanted to start being good (according to his ten year old context), then she should start by trying to get along with the one person she disliked the most – Emma Swan.

If she was honest with herself, Regina had expected a fight (or anything else that resembled the last time Emma came for dinner) but none of that happened and as the days passed, she found herself even finding the blonde's childish ministrations to be that of endearing. No doubt Henry had been on an easy communication with her recently too – smiles and words thrown her way were equally given back, and for the first time in a long time, Regina actually felt happy.

"Goodness," Regina snapped into realization and her hand shot out to seek the arm beside her. "Turn the car around; we have to fetch Henry!"

She had been so engrossed in the current events that Regina had completely let slip the fact that Henry had informed her that he was going to a classmate's for an important project, promising to get back before dinner. In fact, Regina had no idea what the time was. Gauging from the time she left the house to the rough estimate of a ten minute drive, Regina figured it would probably be close to seven now.

"Christ, Regina," Emma cursed as the impact of Regina's pull on her arm caused her swerved and she missed a narrow hit just in time. "Relax! Henry is going to be just fine. In fact, you'll see him soon enough."

As soon as the words were out, Regina felt the automobile slow to a stop and gave a silent exhale. All of a sudden, she felt adrenaline coursing through her veins at the thought of what could be opposite that blindfold, her gut feeling sending mixed signals to her conscious mind. As Emma helped her out of the vehicle, the rest of Regina's senses heighted their abilities.

A whiff of damp air, the texture of concrete pavement beneath her heels, the song of crickets in the night and the taste of fear on the tip of her tongue all combined to form her body's reaction to the unknown and when she felt Emma's body warmth leaving her, Regina instinctively reached out and gripped the blonde's arm hard.

"Don't," Regina growled. She figured that if she was going to participate in this stupid game, she'd do it smart.

"Relax," Emma murmured, grabbing her hand and slowly leading the older woman. "I was just locking the car."

They walked straight in slow steps – twelve to be exact, anything Regina would do to distract herself from the nerves bubbling deep in her gut – before they came to a halt.

"Ms. Swan?"

The brunette had to mentally applaud herself for not sounding as nervous as she felt but the silence that followed after instilled doubt in her again.

"We're here," Emma softly said after a while as her hands moved to undo the knot of the blindfold behind Regina's head.

"Really, Ms. Swan? _Granny's _diner?"

Granted Regina had not known what to expect but with all the suspense and secrecy, she had definitely been expecting anything else other than the town's local diner as she recognized the door whose ornate furnish had been pushed by her hand countless times over the years. As soon as she realized where they were, Regina's earlier nerves quickly burgeoned into one of anger.

"Is this your idea of some sick joke?"

Yes, Regina never liked surprises because most of the time, they turned out to be huge disappointments like this one. And she was not going to let herself be the fool again.

Just as she swirled around to leave, Emma's hand spun her back around and Regina was faced with a smile.

"You haven't even seen the surprise yet," Emma coaxed as she kept her hand on Regina's, a gesture that made the brunette's stomach do involuntary flips.

"Come in," Emma's gentle voice silenced her thoughts and the blonde pushed open the door to the diner.

The sight was _breathtaking_ and Regina could only stare.

If she had not seen the sign outside nor recognized the exterior of the shop, Regina would not have believed for one second she was in Granny's diner. The once ordinary and quaint interior of the diner now resembled that of a posh restaurant.

Soft music seemed to flow from every direction of all the four corners although Regina could spy no source of sound. The aisle of the diner which had once been stacked by the usual arrangement of tables and chairs is now clear with only a large food tray in the middle of it. Scented candles have been placed in almost every nook and corner of the diner; some on the booths, some on the counter, some on the tables. The only electric light that was on hung lowly over the middle booth (the one which Regina assumed they would be having dinner in) and even that had its light dimmed, a stem of rose entwined around the thin cord that it was hanging from.

"I hope you like it," Emma shifted nervously beside her. "This was the best I can come up with this morning and get it done by tonight. Of course not with a little help though…"

As if on cue, the door to the kitchen swung open and Henry came running out to greet them, followed by Ruby.

"Henry here," Emma smiled as she stalked over to the boy and brought an arm around his shoulder. "Was the one who helped with the interior design and perfected it."

"And Ruby shall be our personal waitress tonight."

At the mention of that, Ruby gave a smirk and bowed low. When Emma had approached her earlier that morning with the idea of turning the diner into a private venue to accommodate a surprise the blonde was going to throw for the Mayor, she had agreed instantly. After closing the diner for that Saturday, they had spent hours scouring the menus of restaurants online to come up with the perfect meal for that night.

"It's nothing big," Emma had said when they were close to giving up on the meal preparation. "Just a simple meal will do, I guess."

But Ruby was not one to be fooled and she knew how big of a deal this was to Emma. Hell if all goes well, Emma might even get lucky tonight thanks to her.

Wriggling free of his birth mother's contact, Henry bounded up to his brunette mother.

"Hi Mom! Do you like it?"

Regina stared at her son, still unable to form words. She was definitely a wee bit disappointed that Henry had lied to her (again) but for this, how could she? Breaking into a smile, she brought a hand to smooth his brown hair.

"Of course I do, Henry. I love it."

Henry beamed up at his mother, relieved and happy at the same time. "Emma did all these for you!"

At the mention of the blonde, Regina brought her gaze to Emma's, who broke into a smile.

"Just returning the favour," Emma winged her hands nervously. "I hope you like the food too."

And as much as she tried not to, Regina felt the corners of her mouth give a small twitch upwards and she cannot help but feel touched in a way, that all these preparations had been for her.

"Well, Ms. Swan," Regina said, smirk in place. "Are we going to continue standing around or am I supposed to satisfy my hunger myself?"

[-]

Dinner had been a quiet but pleasurable affair. The salmon was a little soggy and the salad was a tad bit sour (too much lemon, Regina presumed) but nevertheless, Regina could admit she enjoyed herself. Some things never changed; Henry's chatter still filled most of their conversations, Emma's slight overlook in table manners still managed to irk her. There were obvious changes as well; the diner, for example. And the way Ruby served their food the way royals got served (not like Regina was not used to it, it just had been too long). But there were monumental subtle changes as well: Emma's lingering gaze, smiles supposedly directed to Henry but ended up fixing on her.

Regina was no stranger to the art of seduction or flirtation, but this initiative from Emma held so much more meaning than just "spending more time with her and Henry", as Emma claimed when the brunette asked her why she went through all the trouble.

"A penny for your thoughts?"

Emma's voice broke her reverie and Regina looked up to see the bronze coin lying on the blonde's outstretched palm. It was a cooling night in August and they had decided to take the walk back to the mansion, Emma promising to drive the Mercedes back first thing in the morning. Slipping her hands deeper into her coat pockets, Regina spotted Henry a good distance away from the both of them – a plot to get her and Emma alone together, she'd bet.

"Nothing," Regina replied. "Just thinking."

Emma only hummed in response and Regina was secretly glad that the blonde did not continue the conversation. Her thoughts were loud enough.

"Thank you," Regina said after a few moments of silence. "For… all that."

"You're welcome," Emma smiled.

They were walking close enough for their hands to brush now, and every time it did, the walls of Regina's ears vibrated louder with each heavier thump of her heartbeat. The skin of her hand tingled with anticipation of what would happen next but it never came. By the time they reached the large house, it was close to ten.

"It's getting late, Henry," Regina switched back to mother mode. "Shower before you go to bed."

Henry turned towards his adopted mother. "Can Emma tuck me in tonight?"

It came on instinct and Regina felt a flare of jealousy within her, but that soon diminished as she flicked her eyes over to the blonde who returned the glance.

"I should really get going," Emma said in an apologetic tone to the boy. "Maybe next time, kid."

The droop in Henry's features almost made Regina want to change the blonde's mind, but something stopped her and she only brought a hand around Henry in a gesture of comfort and pulled him close.

"I think you should. Thank you, Ms. Swan, for the evening's events. It really has been enjoyable."

Emma fixed her gaze on her and Regina could feel herself getting nervous. How was it that this woman, whom she had no qualms in trying to dominate and ridicule before, could make her feel something no one had made her feel in years? Thankfully, Henry broke the shadowed tension.

"When can we do this again?" He chirped, grinning up at both his mothers.

"Next time," Emma reached forward to ruffle his hair, an action that Regina had always seen her do and feel an inexplicable endearment for. She felt eyes on her and met hazel eyes with brown ones.

"Hopefully soon," Emma replied and Regina knew it was directed to her.

"Well I guess it's time we head in," Regina said, glancing at her watch as Henry moved forward for a hug from Emma.

"Goodnight, Ms. Swan."

"Goodnight."

The soft click of the front door did not make her secure enough and Regina waited until Henry dashed up the stairs and making sure the blonde had walked away before she dared to lean against the white wood and breathe a sigh of relief.

Emma Swan and her might have started off on the wrong foot and even now there were still some parts of the blonde she disliked, but with each unexpected action from the blonde, Regina could feel her armour slowly cracking and who knows she might just let the blonde in – for better or for worst.

[-]

"How was the date?"

Mary Margaret immediately pounced on her not one minute after she entered the apartment and Emma spotted her roommate sitting on the couch, another one of her Nicholas Sparks' book on hand.

"It's close to twelve, what're you doing up?"

Mary Margaret held up the book. "Reading."

"Oh yeah?" Emma smirked. "It's just strange that it's the same book you're 'reading' every time I come back late."

Her roommate gave a sheepish smile and Emma knew she had seen through the brunette.

"So?" Mary Margaret continued probing. "How was it?"

"It wasn't exactly a date, Henry was there."

The pixie haired brunette grinned. "Using Henry as a means of reducing awkwardness?"

Emma moved to the fridge for a bottle of beer. In a way, that statement was somewhat true. Henry was the neutralisation point between her and Regina and if anything, he was the one that could prevent any combustion from firing up between them. Mary Margaret had been right; Emma knew it was too soon to go any deeper in the tense relationship she had with Regina. That was why she made sure that whenever she was near the brunette, Henry would be around too. Not because she enjoyed the boy's presence, but more because she knew Regina would more calm and giving around him too.

"I guess," Emma decided, taking a swig. "The dinner went unexpectedly well and Ruby had been a great help."

"I just knew you could count on her."

Settling on the couch beside her roommate, Emma turned toward Mary Margaret.

"I really appreciate it, you know, for suggesting that."

Mary Margaret gave such a gentle smile that for a moment, Emma thought she was looking into the same hazel eyes and smile as she did when she was five.

"I just want you to be happy," Mary Margaret replied, bringing a hand to Emma's. "Everybody deserves their happy ending."

If Emma were willing to assess the situation, she would have scoffed at the irony. But the night's events had brought out something in her and she was willing to believe that, even if any sane person knew that it was a lie.

Returning the grasp, the blonde smiled back.

"You too."

That night, Emma did not sleep. Henry's book lay untouched at a corner of her table and she reminded herself to pass it to him the next day; she didn't need that anymore. For so many weeks, she had skimmed the pages and scanned the words, learnt every character's story and her own history. But even that could not make her understand how or why the Evil Queen could be this… nice.

There was an obvious change to Regina ever since the day she made the proposal, Emma noticed. The past week had shown that Regina and her were capable of being amicable and the dinner had proved that there was a more gentler and (dare she say it) happier side to the brunette, and Emma cannot help but start to like this whole arrangement more and more. This Regina was definitely not the one who came charging at her for a period of time when she first came to Storybrooke, and definitely not the one who made sex feel so sinful. Emma absentmindedly smirked to herself.

_The sex. _

Their first time had been aggravating and full of hatred energy surrounding them. How was it that in a span of a few weeks, everything could change? The blonde knew things were going to change drastically in the near future, but how far was she willing to go without hurting anyone and herself in the process?

That was why Emma did what she had done.

The walk to Granny's from Regina's only took half an hour and by then, Ruby had already packed up and left. On top of that, the drive back to Mary Margaret's had only needed a few minutes and Emma had thankful that her roommate had not questioned on her late return even though the blonde had been specific with the details.

The truth was, she had gone to visit the pawnshop owner before heading back. It had been late, but Emma could not wait. The shop had been the only one lit on the street and Emma guessed she was lucky.

"_I need your help."_

She did not even bother asking why the man would be in his shop so late in the night as Emma remembered her direct attitude and Mr. Gold wasted no time in indulging her. Maybe the imp only cooperated fully at night.

x

"_What help could you possibly need that requires a visit from you at eleven in the night?"_

"_Take my heart."_

_Emma knew it was an absurd request and a horrible, hasty decision. But this needs to be done._

"_Pardon?"Mr. Gold's eyes widened a little, the only indication that he too was surprised._

"_I said take my heart out," Emma reiterated. "Do whatever you need to do that: dark arts and all. Can you even do it?"_

_At this, Mr. Gold's smirk came back and Emma actually felt relieved that she was back in a familial scene._

"_Of course I can, dearie. But before I do so, may I ask why?"_

_It was hard to explain at that moment in time, Emma thought. Sure she had been a bail bondswoman before and her record showed countless fights just for standing up for herself. But ultimately, she was still a girl inside and Emma knew from experience that she was not the best when it came to succumbing to feelings and emotions. _

_Although it had only been a week, Regina had wormed her way through and was slowly gnawing through the chains bounded around her heart and Emma cannot let that happen. Everyone fails if they let their emotions get the better of them and she had a mission to complete. _

"_I want to perfect this," Emma said gravely. "And I cannot let myself get distracted with inane ideas."_

_He said nothing, but Emma was sure as hell Mr. Gold had snickered. _

"_Very well," he agreed, coming to stand directly in front of her. "I can take your heart right now, store it in a safe place, and then put it back into you whenever you wish. I can guarantee that."_

_He paused then, and Emma knew that there was something else coming. So, she held her breath._

"_But as you know, all magic comes with a price. After I take your heart, your spirituality will be a separate entity from your body. That means that all the feelings induced from the actions you do after I take your heart out, will still be felt and stored in your heart in chronological order. When I finally put the heart back in you, you will feel all the emotions you would have felt if you had your heart in you in rapid motion, hitting you one by one. It will be intense and possibly physically hurting. Are you sure about this?"_

_Emma stared at the imp with certainty. She had already agreed to manipulation even with her heart, there was nothing else that could faze her. Besides, she assured herself, it was not as if she would _really_ fall in love with the Evil Queen anyway. This was just a precautionary step._

"_I am sure."_

x

Emma moved a hand to the spot on above her chest. In the place where there should be a steady rhythm, there was nothing. In a paradoxical sense, Emma figured if she still had her heart, she would be feeling scared. But _because _she did not have it, she felt nothing. And whoever said feeling nothing was a dull comfort was probably an idiot.

Feeling nothing was dull, there is no comfort strapped to it. It was pure dull.

It was not until the distant whirr of a motor broke Emma from her chain of thoughts when she glanced at the clock and realized that it was already half past five in the morning. Even time was ahead of her.

Lying back onto her bed, Emma counted the seconds as to when she will hear Mary Margaret's door squeak open and the stairs creak as her roommate descends down the stairs to make breakfast. Finally, fatigue took over her being and Emma closed her eyes, daring to face the dark in the beginning of light.

[-]

Regina sat at her desk, staring at budget reports and financial statements that made no sense. It was not like her to keep straying but a certain blonde could not leave her mind. She had not seen nor heard from Emma since the night of the dinner, which she had found rather strange. Ever since the day that Emma had hinted wanting them to be something more on the night that changed everything two weeks ago, Emma and her had engaged in texting (with the blonde mostly starting the conversation) and that was how Regina had sent invitations to her for dinner in the first place.

"Knock knock."

A now all too familiar voice spoke and Regina looked up to find the subject of her thoughts standing not two feet away from her.

"Ms. Swan? Why didn't you knock?"

"I did." The blonde grinned cheekily and placed herself on the chair opposite Regina's.

"I could have been with a client."

"But you weren't."

The sneaky replies were enough to make Regina smile a little before she remembered to ask.

"What are you doing here?"

Emma shrugged, leaning consciously forward. "I missed you."

It was a simple admission, but even that had the power to make Regina's heart flutter and it took a few moments before she cleared her throat to reply.

"We have been seeing each other every day for the past week during dinners, there is nothing to miss."

"But Regina, that is exactly why I miss you," Emma pouted. "Think about it: we've been seeing each other every day for the past week and suddenly we did not see each other yesterday? I felt like something was missing."

Her heart screamed the question but Regina knew better than to ask. She had spotted that bulky book bulging by her son's bookshelf the night after the dinner when she had tucked him in, and she knew Emma and Henry must have met some time yesterday. Regina should have felt peeved that Henry had snuck out again, but this time she only felt disappointed that Emma had not went to see her.

How could it possibly be so difficult to drop by the mansion and pass Henry the book?

"Well, you're here now," Regina stated the fact, going back to her paperwork.

She forced herself to remain oblivious to the blonde staring at her just a feet away and pretended to write.

"Can I take you out on a date?"

Regina snapped her head up. "I thought we had one just two days ago?"

Emma's laughter came out in syllables. "That was a family dinner!"

"Feels like a date to me," Regina muttered as she remembered how Ruby kept smirking and nudging Emma whenever the tall waitress brought in the food. As if that was not obvious enough.

"This time, it'll be a _real _date," Emma continued. "No Henry, no Ruby, just us."

Regina knew she had asked Emma that time was needed for their relationship to evolve, but right now as the blonde woman gave a knowing smirk to her, Regina wanted to just pull the woman forward for a kiss.

But control had always been her dominant field and Regina's face remained stoic, despite her thoughts.

"A date and then what, a relationship?"

It had meant to come out dripping with sarcasm but it turned into a slightly hopeful question and Regina mentally kicked herself.

"That's what I want," Emma spoke. "But as I said, whenever you're ready."

Then she reached forward and lightly cupped Regina's hand, drawing a sharp intake of breath from the brunette woman.

"I just want you to know I'm serious about this… about us."

It could be her own selfish want to be loved or it could be Emma's sincerity in her tone, either way Regina felt herself nodding, albeit hesitantly, and telling Emma that she would be free from six in the evening onwards.

As Emma gave her a huge smile and rose to leave, Regina cannot help but feel anticipated for their date tonight and feeling like a teenager all over again. It was disgraceful and if her mother were here, she would definitely be scolded for harbouring 'silly fantasies'. But the feeling brought a head rush and left her lightheaded.

Maybe loving Emma Swan won't be so bad after all.

* * *

**A/N: Thank you to everyone who read and I hope you enjoyed this chapter!**


	9. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

x

"_Tell me another, tell me another!"_

_Her mother gave her the side look that says she wanted to do otherwise but Snow gave in, not before pointing a warning finger to her daughter and saying, "Just one more, Emma, and then its bedtime."_

_Emma grinned. "Yes, Mother!"_

"_Choose your story, my dear."_

"_I want to hear the story about the Dark one!"_

_Snow creased her brow and looked past Emma's blonde curls into her large, hazel eyes. She had always known Emma was a special child; so different from the other princesses. Instead of dresses, the little girl's tastes leaned towards baggy pants. "I'd run easier with it," she says and Snow and Charming acquiesced, because it made her happy. During cooking classes, Emma would brandish the ladle about like a sword and caused much disturbance, claiming she'd rather be saving the kingdom than staying in the castle. They had been worried at first, why Emma would be so different from the daughters of the Kings and Queens of other lands. But as time passed, Emma's acquired taste just made her more uniquely Emma. _

_At such a young age, it was obvious what little Emma wanted to be and what aspirations she had for her own future; and Snow made a mental note to herself to provide her daughter with the necessary resources when she got older, sixteen maybe, no matter what she chose. _

"_You mean Rumplestiltskin? Well, if you please."_

"_Thank you!"_

_Giving her daughter a fond smile, Snow started her story and Emma dug under the covers as usual, staring at her mother's lips as they moved smoothly with every pronunciation of a syllable and alphabet. She had heard this story countless times, almost as much as the story of the Evil Queen (but she still liked the latter story more). She had always enjoyed hearing about the evil things all of them had done but questions still bugged her._

"_Mama?" _

_Her daughter asked once the story was finished. "How did Rumplestiltskin become the Dark One? And how did the Evil Queen become evil?"_

"_Oh honey," Snow said, smoothing a hand over Emma's golden crown. "Why do you want to know?"_

"_I just want to," Emma gave an indignant reply._

_Snow struggled for an answer, it was not as if she spent every day wondering the transition Regina went through; she already spent enough time defending her kingdom from her evil motives._

"_Well… I guess some people change for different reasons, and those reasons might deem acceptable to them, but not to others."_

_Emma frowned. She did not understand, and she spent a long time pondering the statement. Even after her mother blew the candles out and left her bedchamber, Emma sat and stared into the darkness and wondered. _

_Do people really change, or have they just finally dared to embrace another side of themselves they never really came around to accept before? _

x

The loud smack on the table jostled Emma from her sleep and she jumped up to see Graham towering above her, arms folded and an eyebrow raised.

"I tried shaking you," Graham shrugged. "You were murmuring in your sleep, crazy nightmare?"

Emma rubbed her forehead lightly. She had been having that recurring dream from her childhood for the past few nights and it had been haunting her. It was so vivid and detailed; almost as if she had been transported back in time to relive the moment. Emma had tried her best to remember the memory when she in her conscious state, but it was only in bits and pieces, never as detailed like the one in her dream.

_It must have happened before, _Emma proposed. She was too young to remember but something in her gut made her feel so. Mr. Gold had told her that although not believed in, there are remnants of magic in this world. But the amount is so small that it either took a huge amount of faith or a catalyst to activate it. The dream was definitely a work of magic, but where did it come from? And why?

"I guess," she replied. "I don't really remember much of my dreams."

Graham studied her. "Are you okay, Emma?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"You seem a little… off, nowadays. Monotonous, I would say."

Emma smiled and shook her head. "You're thinking too much, I'm perfectly fine. In fact, I'm very happy."

At this, Graham grinned and pulled a chair so that he was facing the blonde and he leaned forward eagerly.

"Right, the date with the Mayor. How did it go?"

The blonde's mind whirled back three days ago. Their date had gone averagely well she'd suppose, although she did not go through the trouble of making huge preparations. Emma had decided that taking it slow for the first date would do the trick, and she had been right. When Emma had arrived at the mansion that evening, she could tell that the brunette felt overdressed for the occasion when she saw the blonde in usual attire.

"Shall I go back and change?" Regina had asked hesitantly and Emma shook her head.

"You look beautiful either way."

The words sounded so real when it slipped her tongue and Emma saw the brunette smile; something that was rarely directed at her.

Although it took some persuasion, Emma had finally managed to get the uptight Mayor into her Bug and she drove them back to the place Regina left not long ago, the picnic basket stored safely in the backseat.

"Why are we back at my office?"

The tone had obvious disappointment laced with it but Emma said nothing, only lightly grabbing the brunette's wrist and leading her.

In retrospect, Emma praised herself for coming up with such a genius move. She had no time to prepare for anything, seeing that she had only decided to start the ball rolling – that is, by asking Regina Mills out on a date – somewhere in the early afternoon the day after she took her heart out. So with haste, she had only prepared easy food – which consisted of sandwiches, packet drinks and fruits, and the picnic blanket. And what better place to enjoy this than under the Evil Queen's beloved apple tree behind her office at City Hall?

The look on Regina's face said it all and Emma could tell Regina thoroughly loved the simple meal and private time they had together, even though the Mayor's taste might seem exquisite at first glance. Small, albeit careful, conversations were exchanged and Emma knew that this evening spoke volumes despite the amount of words exchanged.

It was one small step from her but one large leap for the both of them. When Emma walked the Mayor to her porch after their picnic dinner, she had not wanted to push any boundaries. But to her surprise (she knew she would be if she had her heart), Regina was the one who initiated the hug. It lasted two seconds longer than a friendly one should, and Emma hugged back, appreciating the other woman's curves (how had she not noticed Regina was so petite before?).

Emma knew she should feel satisfied with how well the night went; but all she could think of on the drive back was what to do next. That was all she could do – thinking. Otherwise, there was only nothing.

"Enjoyable," Emma spoke when she remembered to answer. Then she leaned in just as close.

"Why would you wanna know? Is somebody jealous?"

With widened eyes and hands up in defence, Graham only laughed. "No way! I'm just glad someone else is distracting the Mayor. God knows how much I want her to get off my back. Even a man needs his break, you know?"

Emma only smirked, reaching for the bottle of crackers on her table. Just then, the shrill sound of Emma's cellphone sounded, startling the both of them. Frowning, Emma glanced at the caller ID to see that it was Mary Margaret. It was late afternoon on a Thursday and strange for her roommate to call from the school, more so to even call the blonde knowing she was on shift.

"Mary Margaret? Did something happen?"

"Emma? It's Henry," Mary Margaret's frantic tone gave her nerves away. "He was caught shoplifting."

[-]

When she arrived at the shop, Mary Margaret had already rounded up her class to gather outside while they waited for the school bus to bring them back.

"He's inside with two other classmates," Mary Margaret had worriedly informed her.

She found them lined up in front of the shopkeeper, a burly man with a badly trimmed moustache, like convicts on trial. When the shopkeeper spoke, the gruff tone and lousy attitude turned annoying and Emma tried her best not to slap the man with a bag of mints.

"Damn kids," he muttered after Emma finished taking the statements. "Stealin' and tryna get away with it. Make sure ya do your job, Deputy."

It was a good thing he walked away after that, who knew what would happen to the man's limbs if she stayed for one moment longer.

"Two bags of Cheetos, really?"

Emma turned toward Henry and his classmates – a boy and a girl, to see Henry's look of protest.

"Emma, I didn't do it," he pointed toward the other two. "They did it! They framed me."

"We did not!" The other brunet boy shot back.

"You guys are siblings, of course you would say that!"

The blonde scanned her eyes between the three of them. She hated to show favouritism in such cases but if there was one thing Henry never did, it was stealing. Even Emma had to admit Regina raised him better than that.

Arms folded, she asked Henry to step aside before turning back toward the girl, who until now had not said a word.

"Open your bag."

The hesitation and looks exchanged between brother and sister further proved her gut feeling and Emma hardened her tone.

"Open them, now."

The boy relented and before his sister could stop him, he confessed.

"Fine! We did it, but-"

"I knew it!" Henry interrupted, throwing an accusatory glare at the both of them.

"Do what you have to do, Deputy."

The familiar sultry voice flowed into Emma's being like thick lead and she turned swiftly to face the Mayor, her thundering gaze fixed on the children as her arm protectively draped across Henry's shoulders. Emma did not know when the Regina had stepped in and witnessed her 'interrogation' with the kids but by the look of her face, it was long enough.

"No," The boy grabbed hold of Emma's wrist and she stunned for a moment. "Don't send us to jail!"

When Regina snapped her eyes back up to the blonde's, Emma could swear she saw them soften just a fraction when the brunette focused on her.

"Show them where thieves belong."

Emma said nothing, only looking toward the two children – Nicholas with an open display of fear (for the Mayor) and huddling behind his sister, who tried her best to look brave and defiant but Emma could see through that thin wall.

"Okay kiddos," Emma simply stated as she rounded behind them and gave a gentle push. "Into the car, we'll talk on the drive back to your house."

They knew they were busted and Regina cannot help but smirk as she watched the two children trudge toward the Sheriff's car, Emma stalking behind them. Oh she knew very well who had been the one who had taught them to steal, and a lifetime ago it had been helpful. Now however, if it involved her son, it involved her; and she definitely did not raise Henry to stoop to that level.

She started the car and made her way back with plans of giving calls to the school, especially to that Mary Margaret Blanchard, about such misconduct from students to their own classmates.

"Thank you."

The words came out soft and uncertain; but in the silence of the car, it screamed meaning and Regina turned toward her son and smiled.

"For what?"

Henry flicked his eyes nervously at her. "For sticking up for me and… believing me, I guess. Nobody believed me when I said that bag of Cheetos wasn't mine. Even Emma didn't seem to believe me when I told her."

Even though the relationship between Emma and her is gradually getting better (with all the constant texts between them like teenagers), Regina still felt a prick of jealousy in her heart when she saw Henry's head hung in dejection because of her birth mother's actions. But as quickly as it came, she pushed it aside.

"Emma was only doing her job, dear, I'm sure she wanted to get all her facts right before she makes any decision."

Henry looked at his adopted mother strangely. It was quite unlike for his mom to say a good word on Emma's behalf; even when Emma left the house after dinners during that first week, Henry still caught some breaths of complaints from Regina as she was cleaning up. He wondered if they had any other meet ups without him ever since their dinner together at Granny's.

"Are you and Emma friends now?"

She was lucky they were at a red light, Regina mused, for that question was enough to make her slam her brakes. It was a mostly a fear inducing question, instead of a shocking one. Regina found herself worrying whether Henry would object to the possibility of her and Emma in a relationship. But what was she even thinking? That was way too far into the future, or is it?

"I guess you can say that," Regina recomposed herself.

There was a moment of silence then Henry spoke.

"I like that, you know," He turned to face Regina. "You and Emma getting along; it's nice and it makes everything feel lighter."

She did not say anything, she didn't need to. Regina enjoyed Emma's company too – be it virtually or physically. Although the woman had an odd sense of humour and maybe some childish moments, there was no denying Emma was actually a genuine person at heart and Regina wondered why haven't she given the blonde a chance at first when the latter first came to Storybrooke. But then again, Regina strongly believed in the works of Fate – even if she did not show it. Maybe all these were just part of something bigger; something that included her happiness, and possibly Emma's too.

She could only hope Emma felt the same.

[-]

The blonde glanced warily at the two kids through the rearview mirror – whose full names she had learnt as Nicholas and Ava Zimmer – as she drove the Sheriff's car past the row of houses in the estate.

"So, which one is yours?"

The two did not reply and Emma pursed her lips, her patience wearing thin. They had been driving for close to an hour now and with every wrong direction from them, she felt played.

"Alright, that's enough!"

Emma slammed on the brakes and turned to face the two, who looked a little scared and unsure at her sudden change in demeanor, much to her delight.

"We already talked things through and I promised not to send you the station as long as I make sure you're home. So let me be nice one last time and ask you this: where do you live?"

It took some decision, but Ava finally said, "It's just at the end."

They reached the final stretch of the road and Emma could see an abandoned house standing out in comparison to the other well-furnished ones they had passed. She pulled up by the house and stared at it as if in disbelief.

"You… you live here? Where are your parents?"

"We…"

Nicholas started but stopped and looked toward his twin sister, scanning her face for permission to go on but Ava only sat with her arms crossed, staring at a spot outside the window.

"We don't have any," Ava replied, staring straight into Emma's hazel eyes.

"Why didn't you tell anyone?"

"We'll be sent away to the foster system and we... we don't want that."

Emma gritted her teeth. _At least that had a modicum of physical pain accompanying it. _

"I will have to inform Ms. Blanchard. Being your teacher, she should know about this."

"Please Ms. Deputy," Nicholas said with helplessness in his eyes, the very same kind that Emma used to harbour. "Please don't tell anyone. We don't want to leave each other."

It was a dull feeling; memories of a life long passed flashed itself in Emma's mind and she closed her eyes as she tried her best to rid it. What made her sick, however, was not the impact of the memories, but the emptiness in her heart. As she brought her stare back toward the twins, Emma tried her best to empathize but she could not even make a sound.

Everything should hurt; she remembered what it felt like to be scared and live every day with a constant worry on who would be the next victim of the consequence of the bottle. Instead, Emma only nodded.

"Don't worry, I'll try my best."

Even that statement lacked real motivation and it was obvious the twins held no hope as they left the car and scampered back toward the house.

Emma started the drive back with rationality as her newfound best friend, something she never used to prioritize.

[-]

"Hey."

The brunette stared back in surprise at the blonde on her doorstep and removed her reading glasses.

"Ms. Swan? What are you doing here?"

Emma gave a smile. "I wanted to see if the kid was alright and also because I missed you."

That sentence should not have such a huge effect on her but it did and Regina felt her heart fluttering, returning the smile as she stepped aside and allowed the blonde to enter.

"Henry was a little down, but he cheered up after I made lasagna for him for dinner. How did you handle the two children?" Regina asked as she led the blonde through the foyer into the dining room, preparing drinks for the both of them.

"Don't worry about them, it won't happen again."

Emma's voice suddenly sounded very near and Regina turned swiftly around to find the blonde almost inches away from her. Emma was looking at her with a look she cannot place and for a split second, Regina could not recognize the woman behind those hazel eyes. But then, Emma slowly moved in and the brunette swallowed thickly.

Between the both of them, intimacy had been an out of bounds topic. It had been so easy to sink into the throes of lust when they were on the edge of arguing all the time but now that they were actually getting to know each other better, it was difficult to attempt at physical contact without remembering where their previous touch on each other had led them to.

This time however, Emma was making a very bold move. Regina stood frozen in place, back against the edge of the table as she forced her eyes to bore into Emma's, before she relinquished and stared at Emma's inviting pink lips. Instinctively, Regina felt herself inching nearer toward Emma too, eyes turning half lidded as she waited for the moment of contact.

"Ms. Swan, I…"

As soon as the words left her mouth, Regina regretted it. Emma immediately pulled back and stepped away.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done that."

She wanted to do something – anything that could make bring the blonde's presence back to her own, but Regina excelled in self-control.

"It's alright," Regina cleared her throat and handed the glass to Emma before deciding to move on to safer topics.

"So how is that budget report from the Sheriff's department coming along?"

Emma laughed. "Really, Madame Mayor? You want to talk about _budget reports _now?"

Regina raised an eyebrow. "Don't think that just because we're friends, Ms. Swan, that I would let you pass the monthly deadline."

"That's a pity," Emma mock sighed as she stepped closer. "I really thought we could be something more."

It had been said with a playful smirk, but Regina could hear the serious undertone that statement carried and her heart picked up all over again.

"We could be…" Her voice came out as a breathy murmur as Emma reached up to tuck a piece of loose strand behind her ear.

"Regina…"

Her name fell from the woman's lips like a song of awe and Regina reveled in it before she remembered to answer.

"Yes?"

"Call me Emma."

It was a very simple request and Regina wondered why she had never addressed Emma by her first name before. Maybe it had evolved to become a habit, but as soon as the name slipped past the tip of her tongue, Regina learnt that some habits really do can break within moments.

"Emma."

Emma smiled; she felt her muscles moving and stretching almost as wide as the ocean. She would kill or die – she couldn't decide which – to feel the moment right now. She imagined it would probably be a very sweet feeling, the sound of Regina's uncertainty on addressing her by her first name for the first time made everything much more adorable. But all she could do was smile. Was that a good or bad thing, Emma wondered. That was short-lived however, when Regina lightly coughed and Emma realised she had been silent for too long.

"Sorry," Emma smiled sheepishly. "It's just that there is so much endearment in the current situation I cannot choose which one to focus more on – you or the sound of my name on your lips."

She was never much of a sweet talker, but Emma found that without her heart, everything came much easier with a much darker motive.

Regina gave a sultry laugh. "I never took you as the one with the honeyed tongue."

"And I never took you as the one I would…"

_Take my heart out for. _

Emma trailed off as she brought a hand to stroke her cheek, and Regina found herself glued to the way Emma's lips slightly parted, as if providing an escape way for the emotions of the blonde to fill the space between them.

"Can I at least kiss your cheek?"

Biting her lip, Regina nodded and Emma leaned forward.

Regina shuddered involuntarily when she felt Emma's lips ghost across her cheek like a gentle caress, before they were firmly planted into her flesh. She had not wanted to, but with Emma, her actions always came out the opposite of what she intended them to. Regina brought her arms around Emma's waist and pulled her flushed against her own self, diminishing any trace of space between the both of them. When she felt Emma's arms returning the tight embrace, Regina's heart swelled and she felt herself blushing, turning to bury her head in Emma's blonde curls to in an attempt to hide from her own juvenile behaviour.

Then Regina felt Emma slowly pulling back and the gentle pull of her chin as Emma brought her head to face her before leaning forward again. Like a dying piece of earth, Emma planted kisses on every inch of Regina's face – her other cheek, nose, forehead and that space between the eyes, bringing nourishment back as Regina closed her eyes and sunk in the rare display of affection.

Her lips remained untouched however, and Regina could not help but feel a sense of loss at that.

"I really should get going," Emma said with a smile when she stepped back.

"But you haven't talked to Henry yet."

It was a feeble attempt at getting the blonde to stay Regina knew, and she hated herself for feeling so vulnerable but with Emma, everything was just so uncontrollable.

"I thought you should have realised by now, Regina, I came for you."

Regina felt her insides flutter at the open admission and she nodded.

"I didn't want to have false hope."

They stopped at the porch and Emma turned back toward Regina.

"With me, you will never need to worry about that."

Regina recognised an empty promise when she heard one, but the look on Emma's face was so sincere she desperately wanted to believe it.

"Goodnight, Emma."

"'Night."

And as Regina closed the front door and made her way to her bedroom, lost in secret smile and giddy with anticipation, she failed to notice how she had forgotten to clear their glasses of cider in the dining room, and how Emma's drink was left untouched.


	10. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9 **

It had taken awhile but with the help of Graham, Emma had finally managed to track down the father of the two children Nicholas and Ava Zimmer – Michael Tillman, the town's auto shop owner. He had denied that the children was his (obviously, since the curse was still intact) but nights of studying Henry's book had led her to recognise him as the Woodcutter and the two kids as Hansel and Gretel.

Emma had given up; days of trying to convince Michael that the children were his and even showing him something belonging to Nicholas and Ava's late mother (which he recognised but still remained clueless about) led to no avail. Then came the time where she had to bring the children to Boston under order of the Mayor (yes, Regina still had much authority around here) to be put under foster care.

Reluctantly, she had packed the kids into the Sheriff's car but some efforts needed to be put in even at the last minute in the name of hope. And she was glad she had done it. Pretending her vehicle had broken down; Emma had called in Michael to check on it. Of course it was found out that there had been no problem, but that was not the point.

"Why did you call me down here?" He had asked, a bit annoyed as the two of them stood at the edge of the town.

Emma gestured toward the children in the Sheriff's car. "I just thought you needed to see your children one last time before they leave for good."

She watched as he remained silent and gazed at the children, for a very long time she might add.

Then he finally looked back at her and said, "I'll take them. I'll try to be a dad."

It was funny how things work. Emma had watched as the children were led back to his truck and they embraced, whether Michael Tillman believed it or not, they _are _family and it was sooner or later before they realise it as they fall into routine. Regina had looked a bit surprised when Emma had come to report to her about Nicholas and Ava finding their father, and maybe a tad bit scared. Emma knew the Evil Queen's curse was slowly falling apart, and it wasn't long before she could finally break it.

And break the Evil Queen along the way.

[-]

Regina fiddled with her pen as she sat in the Mayor's office. Things are slowly changing in Storybrooke; first had been the clock, who chimed its first chime in years. Then had been the times where she spotted Mary Margaret and David at the diner together, laughing and almost touching. The imp had been cooping himself up in his shop lately, suspiciously so. Even Ruby and Granny had started getting along well despite the countless times she had seen them arguing before.

It was scaring her. She needed answers, she needed reassurance. These thoughts were quickly pushed aside though, when Regina spun her chair around to gaze out of the window at her apple tree, which stood proudly in the sunlight of late summer. Just a week ago, that had been the very same spot where Emma and she had spent their first date.

The brunette smiled fondly as she recalled their easy flow of conversation, so much different from the fierce animosity they originally harboured for the other. Emma had listened to her ramblings about apples and gardening and baking. These were topics Regina enjoyed talking about but found no chance to, topics that she held much passion for, and topics that Regina was sure held no interest to the blonde. But Emma had smiled and nodded and even laughed at the right times, and Regina wondered if this meant something more.

Maybe one day, if she was brave enough, she could tell Emma the horrible truth. And maybe one day, if it was meant to be, Emma could still accept her for who she is. But right now was not the time.

A firm three knocks resounded on her office door and Regina spun back around, barking out a "Come in".

The repetitive thud of a cane as the figure strolled in was a huge hint as to who it was. Regina glared at Mr. Gold as the man stood with a smirk before her table, cocking his head in a bow.

"Madame Mayor."

Regina pursed her lips. Anything that came along with this imp was never anything good. "What do you want?"

"To settle some business, dearie," he replied, running a bony finger along the edge of a chair then inspecting his finger, as if the chair was as dirty as his past deeds.

"What," Regina snapped. She always hated the way the man would wind his true meaning around his words, as if speech was a puzzle itself.

He grinned at her and placed himself down on the chair, idly looking around. "You owe me something; something that I would like to cash in now."

Regina frowned and opened her mouth to protest before the memory from eleven years ago washed over her like an epiphany.

x

"_Gold," Regina barked as she entered the dusty shop. The pawnshop had never been her favourite place in this town. It was too dark and musty, very much like Rumplestiltskin's cell back in the Enchanted Forest itself. _

"_I need a child," she immediately cut to the chase once she spotted him behind the counter, prey like vision focusing on her. "And I need your help."_

_He cocked his head. "Well I'm flattered, but uninterested."_

_Regina pursed her lips and refrained from rolling her eyes. _

"_Not like that," the brunette snapped, and then she took another inhale._

"_I've spent all morning looking for adoption agencies; the wait lists were over two years long. But you Gold, you know how to cut through red tape. And if anyone can work this system to find me a baby, it's you."_

_Gold kept his face stoic, but Regina read it like a book. _

"_You wish to adopt."_

"_Well, don't look so surprised."_

"_Why I'm not," Gold immediately replied. "I'm sure you'll make a… mother of some sort."_

_Regina's patience was running low and sitting through a lecture of what kind of parent she would be from the imp did not top the agenda for the day._

"_Can you help me," Regina snapped._

"_Of course I can but a word of caution: ask yourself is this something you're ready for."_

"_It's something I need."_

"_Well that may not be the same thing," Gold softly said before looking up to stare straight at her. "I'll get you a child."_

_Regina nodded satisfied, and turned to leave before the imp spoke again. _

"_But whether or not that is helping you, remains to be seen. When you become a parent, you must put your child first no matter what."_

_She studied the nostalgic look on his face, something that the imp rarely manifests. They had worked together for so long and he had been her first teacher in the dark arts; there were many things in history they knew about the other, and there were also things that were kept quiet and never discussed. Regina knew Rumplestiltskin had been a father before, even after he had become the Dark One. And she knew that he had lost him, or rather his son had left him, tragically so. But she had never addressed the topic with him, more so because she was eager to master the dark arts quickly at the time._

_The current look on his face proved just how much Gold missed and still loved his son, and she only smirked. Love is weakness, and this was just another evidence of that truth: how someone as powerful as the Dark One could be reduced to this sentimental face just because he loved. She needed the child for company, isn't that sufficient enough?_

"_I know," Regina replied._

"_Also," Gold added, in a minute's time transforming into the Rumplestiltskin Regina was so familiar with. "Nothing I do is without something in return."_

_Regina narrowed her eyes, she knew this was coming. "Fine, name it."_

_Gold gave a cold smile. "Something, dearie."_

_She furrowed her brows in question. "Something?"_

"_Yes, something. But what thing exactly, I will only tell you when the time comes for me to need it. And when I cash this something in, you cannot refuse."_

_He smiled then, showing his teeth and Regina thanked the curse that it at least looked more decent compared to the rotting and yellow ones he had as Rumplestiltskin way back._

"_Deal?"_

_Regina pondered. It couldn't be that bad and besides, what does she have in Storybrooke that the imp could possibly want? It was sure that Gold does not know about the secret vault she had under her father's mausoleum and whatever it was, Regina was confident she could twist her way out. _

"_Deal."_

x

"So," Regina leaned back in her chair and folded her arms. "What is this something?"

She had not known what to expect, really: her apple tree, a death order, money (even though the brunette knew this was of least value to the imp than all the others)? What she definitely did not expect was Gold's next answer.

"Just a strand of your hair, is all."

"What?"

Regina could not help the tone of surprise that left her lips at the pawnshop owner's ridiculous request. She knew she could not refuse, but this was absurd.

"Why?"

"I'm looking for a new shampoo and your hair is exactly how I want mine to be," Gold casually shrugged.

It was bullshit and Regina rolled her eyes, Gold smirking as he enjoyed the look of annoyance on the brunette's face.

"So," Gold, ever the impatient one, spoke. "Are you going to do it or do you need my help?"

As he said it, the imp rose and reached into his pocket to take out a tiny hand scissors.

Glaring at him, Regina jerked back and growled, "Don't touch me."

Then almost gingerly, she grasped a strand from her own scalp and pulled hard.

"Thank you," Gold smiled as he received the strand from a scowling Regina. "I believe this will work just fine."

"Now, leave."

Her order had been heeded and Gold stalked toward her office door, but not before turning around the last minute.

"Isn't it nice to feel loved, your Majesty?"

And as Regina stood still staring at the space by her door long after he had left, she cannot help the chills that ran down her spine at the realisation from that mere statement. For one, her long time suspicion had been confirmed that Gold _did _retain his memories after the curse. But that was not even the most of her worries compared to the fact that Gold _knew_. He knew about her and Emma.

[-]

"… and we played catch and Ava even gave me a packet of M&Ms as an apology!"

Emma smiled as she listened to Henry after asking how things between him and the twins are. It seems like the twins were making efforts to be nicer, now that they were staying with their father. In her peripheral vision, she saw her roommate approaching them at the gates of the school.

"Hi, Ms. Blanchard!"

"Henry, remember to complete your homework," the pixie haired brunette smiled before turning to the blonde. "Emma, do you mind if Ruby comes over tonight?"

The blonde grinned. "Of course not, it's Friday after all. But one thing… I'm not staying for dinner tonight."

Mary Margaret raised an eyebrow before looking at a grinning Henry and understanding. "Oh, I see. Well, have fun at Regina's!"

The blonde caught her roommate's wink and rolled her eyes playfully. "Don't wait up, and you guys have fun too!"

The trio parted ways and Emma and Henry made their way to the Bug.

"Could you stay longer tonight?"

Emma swallowed. "I'm not sure if your mom would like that… I mean she always hates it if I show up impromptu."

That was only half the truth. The texts from Regina had been reduced to one word ones and when Emma had subtly asked about it, the brunette had just brushed it off saying things in the mayoral office were piling up. Even an idiot could tell that that was a lie; something had triggered Regina and Emma was determined to find it out.

Beside her, Henry waved his hand dismissively – something that he definitely got from his adopted mother.

"No worries, she likes you enough to not get angry," he grinned.

And Emma wanted – no, needed – to believe that. Otherwise, all her efforts from the beginning would come to naught.

"Alright," Emma shot a small smile to the boy. "To Mifflin Street, it is."

[-]

Regina loved her son, she really did. Even when he began going through the phase of believing that she was the Evil Queen and refusing to talk to her or even being in her presence, Regina had kept on showing concern and held on to the hope that it will pass. It did, fortunately. But it unfortunately came with a certain blonde.

The brunette tried not to shift in her seat as she pushed her sliced beef around the plate, something definitely out of her character and she was sure Emma had noticed. She had tried her best to engage Henry in conversation, conveniently ignoring the blonde whenever the two cracked up with their usual joke. It was as if Henry was the bridge that connected them with a gap in the middle.

When dinner ended, Regina had swiftly cleared the plates and tasked Henry with entertaining his birth mother. God knew she desperately needed space from her Emma and most importantly, her thoughts.

"Are you okay?"

A gentle voice roused her and Regina jumped, almost crashing the plates in the sink in the process.

"Ms. Swan," Regina glared as she turned to face the blonde. "It's rude to sneak up on people."

Emma held her hands up in defence. "I'm sorry, I thought you heard me. I _did _clear my throat."

Regina shut her eyes and tried her best to erase the image of the blonde. It was no use, Emma was everywhere.

"You seem jumpy tonight."

And there she was, invading her private space again. Regina cursed under her breath before taking a safe step away from the blonde.

"I'm perfect Ms. Swan, thank you. Now if you'd please excuse me."

"Regina."

A hand stopped her from leaving and Regina stilled at the contact, before quickly wrenching her hand away from it.

"Regina, please."

Emma's voice dropped into a mere whisper and Regina felt her heart clench. Sensing the brunette lowering her walls, Emma gently brought the brunette closer and coaxed her.

"Whatever that is happening, just know you don't have to face it alone."

Regina bit her lip. For once, she was feeling unsure about her next decision. On one hand; if she told Emma about Gold, the blonde might get suspicious about why she would fear the mere pawnshop owner knowing about her personal life. If she does not however, Emma might get the wrong idea about her hesitance to speak.

"Look Emma, I…"

Regina had been determined to stand strong, but then Emma smiled that damned smile that got her every time and all efforts were futile.

"It's okay if you don't want to say it, Regina. But whenever you're ready, my shoulder is _always _here."

"No, I…"

Regina trailed off, finally sighing.

"I really like the idea of there having an 'us' Emma, believe me I really do. I know I may have seemed reluctant all this time but I… There are difficulties and I don't know how to express them without you getting the wrong idea. And through all these, there is only one thing I am certain about: I really like you."

It was difficult for her to say all these, so Regina kept her eyes glued to the floor, her hands seeking refuge by gripping at the edge of the sink behind her. When she was met with silence, the brunette held her breath and slowly brought her gaze up to the blonde, who was openly grinning.

"I like you too," Emma softly said, slowly studying those plump red lips as she leaned in close. It was somewhat adorable and definitely sweet to see the flush on Regina's cheeks, so unlike her domineering character as Mayor. But Emma knew this was one big step for both of them, and she tried her best to feel happy – to revel in the sweetness she _should_be feeling, however all that sounded was her thoughts.

"But I don't understand… Why were you scared?"

"Emma…" Regina tried, clenching her fists behind her now. "I was once… I've done a lot of bad things before. You… I…."

Oh Emma knew exactly what the brunette meant and the conscious part of her smirked. Quickly placing a finger on the brunette's lips, Emma shushed Regina.

"Everyone has a past, Regina. Just because whatever you have done have vastly affected you doesn't mean you're worse than other people."

Regina watched doe-eyed as Emma took another step closer until their bodies were practically molded against the other.

"Emma, wha-"

"Regina," Emma said with all the seriousness she could muster being in such close proximity with the brunette. "Shut up and kiss me."

And kiss they did. In one swift movement without hesitation, Regina connected her lips to Emma's and pressed tightly, breathing in the blonde. When Emma's tongue swiped her bottom lip in permission, the brunette gave in quickly as well – biting, licking and nipping in a desperate attempt to swallow the blonde whole.

It was their first _real _kiss – Emma knew, and she was going to make this goddamned right. Regina swept her up with so much enthusiasm and she was determined to do the same. Sliding her arms around the other woman's slender waist, every inch of space was eliminated from their bodies and Emma kissed back with as much fervor, one hand moving up to tangle in silk brown locks. Compared to their first time which only consisted of messy biting and inflicted pain, this was so much more.

Even when air finally drove a wedge between them, Emma did not stop. Gripping her hands on Regina's sides, she pulled on the zipper of the brunette's navy dress and shrugged the dress off, her mouth immediately gluing itself to the newly exposed skin – sucking and soothing the smooth skin.

Regina groaned as she grinded her hips against the blonde's pelvis, feeling her body strongly responding as arousal pooled between her thighs.

"Emma," she said between breaths. "We can't, Henry will-"

"Henry is upstairs, he won't come down."

Emma's voice was so low it sounded like a growl and Regina's protest was drowned by a moan when the blonde slipped her hands under her bra and massaged her breasts sensually, rolling the dark nubs into hardening peaks between her fingers.

"Fuck this," Regina mumbled as she brought Emma's face to hers and roughly sucked on her bottom lip.

Her hands slid downwards and undid the button of Emma's jeans, cupping her sex over her panties which were already drenched beyond belief. Regina smirked, memories from their first time flooding through her brain but this time it was different. There is _feeling, _and it was slowly pouring out of her from the walls of her heart to the tip of her tongue.

Emma groaned and grinded her hips down against Regina's hand, desperate for friction. She needed this; she needed release. It was so much easier without a heart, she mused. Regina was a beautiful woman, Emma had to admit that. She was no stranger to Regina's every curve and she knew which places for her fingers to grace to illicit the kind of moan from Regina that used to make her heart beat faster. But Emma was definitely foreign to the woman in front of her now; the woman whom she spent time knowing to understand enough of her fears and insecurities.

As Regina carefully entered her and slowly pumped (a stark contrast to their previous times), Emma wrapped her arms around Regina and pulled her even closer, burying her face in the woman's neck and inhaling as much as she could.

This is wrong, Emma thought as she moved against Regina between groans and gasps of pleasure. She should be hating this woman who ruined her family's life, who took away her parent's kingdom, who brought them all this misery. But Reina filled her the way you wear your favourite sweater, like a cigarette at five in the morning, and like a hot cup of coffee on the coldest of winters.

"Fuck, Regina. Harder, more," Emma gasped as she sucked fervently on Regina's neck and slipped her own fingers into the brunette's moist center.

"Emma."

Her name fell from Regina's lips like a breathy prayer and Emma felt herself nearing the edge, pumping relentlessly into Regina and roughly stroking the other woman's clitoris.

"Slow… Slow…"

Regina gripped Emma's wrist with her free hand and slowly guided the blonde's fingers within her in a gentler pace, resting her forehead against Emma's. "Slow, Emma. I want to feel you."

Emma bit her lip from begging. This was not what she wanted; she wanted it hard, fast and rough. Anything to make her feel physical pleasure and pain on the outside rather than the nothing she felt on the inside. But for Regina, she obliged.

"Yes, yes," Regina moaned as her walls clenched around Emma's fingers and she captured the blonde's lips once more, sucking hard on Emma's bottom lip as she came.

It was such a turn on to watch the beautiful woman come undone from her fingers and Emma felt herself on the edge.

"Regina," Emma near whimpered through swollen lips. "Make me come."

With only a final thrust into Emma and a hard massage on the blonde's clitoris by Regina, Emma tumbled over the edge with a weak release.

The two women leaned against each other half naked and panting, before Emma pushed herself away from Regina and quickly shrugged on her jacket. Although disappointed at the sudden loss of contact, Regina only reached for Emma and tugged, bringing them into another gentle kiss.

"Thank you," Regina murmured against Emma's lips.

"You shouldn't," Emma replied and she meant it, but the brunette only gave a low chuckle as she stepped away and carefully slip back into her dress.

"Do you want to stay for the night, Emma?"

It was a question with a huge commitment, but this time Regina was ready.

"I've been waiting so long for you to ask this," Emma grinned her reply as her hand sought the brunette's, intertwining their fingers together tightly.

The smile Regina gave at the gesture could light a thousand watt bulb and if Emma had a heart, it would have skipped two beats, just because Regina was worth more. As the brunette led her upstairs toward unspoken promises and uncertain futures, Emma felt a jump her heart – a tinge of fear and a mixture of relief.

Maybe having taking her heart out had been a good idea after all.

[-]

Henry narrowed his eyes between his two mothers as his brunette one kept stealing glances while the blonde one remained casually eating. He knew something was up when he came down for breakfast to find Emma already seated at the table, munching on his cereal. And then another surprise when his mother came with blueberry pancakes, one of his favourites (but he still preferred the apple ones more, not that he was going to admit that anytime soon).

"Mom?"

Regina snapped her head up at the sound of her son's voice and gave a smile, or what she hoped was a firm one. "Yes, dear?"

"Why is Emma here?"

The question was awkward, that much was evident. Henry watched as his mother shifted in her seat and swallowed, glancing at Emma nervously but the blonde only continued eating, fixing her gaze on Henry and smiling.

"Why, do you not want me here," Emma replied and Henry shook his head.

"No it's just… did you stay over?"

"No," Regina was quick to cut in. "Emma came really early in the morning to help me with something and then-"

Henry rolled his eyes and interrupted. "I'm eleven, not five Mom."

"Well, I guess the kid knows what he's learnt," Emma smirked and Henry pulled a gagging face before turning serious again.

"It's okay, you know."

At their questioning gazes, Henry only shook his head and smiled, moving to stand between his seated mothers. Reaching forward, he took the hand that had guided him through his growing years and the hand that he had grasped for and intertwined their fingers.

"I really, really like you two together," Henry shyly said as he watched his mother's almost surprised face. "It feels like we're a _family_."

Overwhelmed by sheer relief, Regina pulled her son into a tight embrace.

"Oh, Henry. I was so worried about what you might think."

"You don't have to, Mom," Henry smiled at his two mothers after he pulled back. "I like how it is now, we're all happy."

"We are," Regina murmured as she squeezed Emma's hand.

Emma looked between the two smiling faces in front of her and forced her facial muscles to respond. It was difficult, it was numbing, it was _empty. _People said not feeling anything was better than getting hurt. But they did not physically take their heart out; they did not know a single _fucking _thing about what it was like to feel literally nothing.

She felt no joy; even when Mary Margaret brought back her favourite bear claw with extra whipped cream on top, even when Henry told her the art and crafts project she had helped him with for hours had topped the class, even when Graham and Ruby teased her about Regina.

Yes, every single damned thing she had done after she stepped into this town was either directly or indirectly caused by or because of Regina.

As she felt Regina disentangle her fingers to clear the breakfast plates, Emma knew that the Emma-with-a-heart would have felt a jab of loss, no matter how tiny. Under all that tough crap, that was who she really was: a romantic and a hopeless dreamer. She had spent years in this land and the foster system had never been kind, surviving through all sorts of abuses alike. She had lost herself in the way, only focusing on finding her family and revenge.

But was revenge really that important? And now that she had actually met her parents, does she really want them back as parents instead of the good friends that had morphed into? Emma closed her eyes and shook her head, as if doing that could physically knock the thoughts out.

All this time Emma had wanted to break the curse and break the Evil Queen, but in doing so, she was slowly breaking herself.

* * *

**A/N: I apologise for the late update! I've been so busy now that my finals are approaching and more deadlines, ugh. Life does get in the way of my dream to stay in bed and write fanfic all day, haha! I hope this chapter was worth the wait and thank you to all who have read, F&F, and reviewed! **


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